ECONOMIC CONFIDENCE LIFTS RINGGIT VERSUS US DOLLAR, MAJOR CURRENCIES AT THE CLOSE TODAY

By Danni Haizal Danial Donald

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 23 (Bernama) -- The ringgit broke through the key psychological level of 4.00 against the US dollar, touching a more than seven-year high of 3.9992 earlier today, buoyed by a robust outlook for Malaysia’s economy, easing geopolitical tensions, and the decision to maintain the Overnight Policy Rate.

This marks the Malaysian currency’s strongest level in more than seven years, which was last seen on June 18, 2018, at 3.9960/9990.

At 6 pm, ringgit jumped to 4.0045/0080 against the greenback from 4.0370/0415 at Thursday’s close. It was last seen at this level at 4.0040/0090 on Jan 4, 2021.

The local unit also traded higher against other major currencies and ASEAN peers on Friday.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the improved market sentiment was supported by easing geopolitical pressures amidst a robust outlook for the Malaysian economy this year.

“The Bank Negara Malaysia Monetary Policy Committee was quite positive in its assessment based on the accompanying statement yesterday.

“The economy will be supported by resilient domestic demand such as consumption and investment, implementation of smaller-scale projects, realisation of approved investments along with continued strength in the electrical and electronics (E&E) space,” he told Bernama.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has also raised its projection for Malaysia's real gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 4.3 per cent for both 2026 and 2027, representing an upward revision of 0.3 percentage points.

According to its January 2026 World Economic Outlook (WEO) update released on Tuesday, “Global Economy: Steady amid Divergent Forces”, the IMF also estimated Malaysia’s real GDP growth at 4.6 per cent in 2025, compared to 5.1 per cent growth in 2024.

The IMF previously set Malaysia's 2025 GDP at 4.5 per cent and 4.0 per cent in 2026.

The report stated that global growth is projected to remain resilient at 3.3 per cent in 2026 and at 3.2 per cent in 2027: rates similar to the estimated 3.3 per cent outturn in 2025.

The ringgit appreciated versus the Japanese yen to 2.5337/5361 from 2.5440/5469 on Thursday, gained versus the British pound to 5.4177/4224 from 5.4273/4334, and rose vis-à-vis the euro to 4.6993/7034 from 4.7205/7257 yesterday.

It strengthened against the Singapore dollar to 3.1302/1330 from 3.1441/1478 on Thursday, advanced versus the Thai baht to 12.8362/8544 from 12.8587/8792, inched up vis-à-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 238.0/238.3 from 238.9/239.3, and surged against the Philippine peso to 6.77/6.78 from 6.82/6.83 previously.

-- BERNAMA