Malaysia ringgit fall due to external factors, economic prospects good, central bank says

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s ringgit hit its lowest level since the Asian financial crisis on Tuesday (Feb 20), as emerging Asian currencies suffered against the dollar.

In trade on Tuesday, the Malaysian ringgit fell nearly 0.3 per cent to almost 4.8 against the greenback, its worst reading since January 1998 during the Asian financial meltdown.

The currency had suffered a more than 4 per cent drop already this year, thanks in part to poor export performance and rising US interest rates.

The Singdollar was trading at RM3.568 on Feb 20.

Malaysia’s central bank governor Datuk Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said on Tuesday that the currency’s performance had been affected by “external factors” such as US rate hikes, geopolitical concerns and uncertainty about China’s economic prospects.

“The current level of the ringgit does not reflect the positive prospects of the Malaysian economy going forward,” he said in a statement.

He said expected growth in global trade and Malaysian exports should have a positive impact on the currency this year.