KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened lower against the US dollar as sentiment for the local note weakened on rising expectation that the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this month.

At 9.08 am, the local unit was traded at 4.4550/4590 versus the greenback from 4.4520/4570 on Friday.

A dealer said the Federal Reserve gave a surprisingly clear statement last Friday on the interest rates hike, saying that it would act at its next meeting scheduled for March 14-15, causing investors interest to shift towards the greenback.

Against other major currencies, the ringgit was also traded lower.