Ringgit opens near five-year high after BNM holds policy rate

THE ringgit opened near a five-year high against the US dollar on Friday after Bank Negara Malaysia’s Monetary Policy Committee decided to keep the Overnight Policy Rate unchanged at 2.75 per cent.

At the start of trading, the local currency hovered around 4.02 against the greenback, a level last seen on Jan 21, 2021, when it was quoted at 4.0280/0320.

By 8am, the ringgit had strengthened further to 4.0285/0440, compared with Thursday’s closing level of 4.0370/0415.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the central bank’s decision reinforced expectations of policy stability, which in turn supported the ringgit.

“The MPC’s decision reinforced expectations of policy stability, supporting the local currency,” he said.

He added that market sentiment improved after United States President Donald Trump softened his stance on Greenland.

At the same time, US Personal Consumption Expenditures inflation rose in line with expectations to 2.8 per cent in December from 2.7 per cent previously, strengthening market expectations that the US Federal Reserve would keep interest rates unchanged at its next meeting.

“Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index fell 0.48 per cent to 98.287 points, while spot gold prices continued to hit record highs at US$4,939.64 per ounce. As such, the ringgit could appreciate further today amid dollar weakness,” he told Bernama.

In early trade, the ringgit traded mixed against major currencies. It strengthened against the Japanese yen to 2.5416/5516 from 2.5440/5469 on Thursday, but weakened versus the British pound to 5.4381/4590 from 5.4273/4334 and eased against the euro to 4.7347/7529 from 4.7205/7257.

The local currency also showed mixed performance against regional peers. It rose against the Philippine peso to 6.81/6.84 from 6.82/6.83, was little changed against the Indonesian rupiah at 238.4/239.4 from 238.9/239.3, but slipped against the Singapore dollar to 3.1458/1581 from 3.1441/1478 and weakened versus the Thai baht to 12.9592/13.0187 from 12.8587/8792. - January 23, 2026