The Malaysian ringgit would not hit the 5.0 level against the US dollar because Malaysia is not experiencing any form of crisis.
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) assistant governor (AG) Adnan Mohamad Zahid said the central bank does not see any concerning trends or speculative pressure; thus, the 5.0 level will certainly not happen and is unrealistic.
“When we went through levels from 2.5 to 3.0, then 4.0, we were in a crisis. But now, we are not in a crisis. So there is not a reason to be hung up over the dollar-ringgit level,” he said in a panel discussion titled ‘Navigating Ringgit Exchange Rate Dynamics’.
The event was held in conjunction with yesterday’s one-day BNM Sasana Symposium 2023 themed Structural Reforms, For A Stronger Malaysia.
Adnan said that although the central did see some residents wanting to invest abroad, exporters just holding back from conversion, or importers at the margin looking to buy forward a little faster, these would be managed well within BNM’s capabilities in managing the
reserves.
“Of course, we will continue to see fluctuations in the ringgit-dollar, but we do not see the ringgit heading anywhere in that (5.0 level) direction.