The ringgit continued its strong position by opening higher and reaching 4.16 against the US dollar on Monday, boosted by continued buying interest in the local currency.
At 10.10am, the ringgit was at 4.1690, up 0.10% against the US dollar from where it opened at the start of Monday's Asian session.
At the close of last week, the ringgit strengthened to its highest level in more than a year, surpassing the 4.1730/1790 level recorded on October 2 last year.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist, Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, said the ringgit's performance continued to show strong improvement since last week with an increase of more than seven percent since the beginning of the year, making it the best-performing currency in Asia at the moment.
At the same time, the resilience of the Malaysian economy means that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) may want to maintain the current Overnight Policy Rate, suggesting that the gap with the Fed Funds Rate will narrow further, leading to a possible appreciation of the ringgit.
Therefore, key data points such as the third quarter 2025 gross domestic product to be announced on Friday will ensure that the ringgit remains stable in the near term.
Meanwhile, BNM Governor Datuk Seri Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour in an interview with The Edge said the global landscape has completely changed from the past.
In recent years, external factors have put some pressure on the ringgit but they have shown a concerted effort and provided lasting support.
In the opening session, the ringgit mostly opened higher against a basket of major currencies.
The ringgit strengthened against the yen to 2.7108/7214 from 2.7192/7220 at last Friday's close, and also rose against the euro to 4.8133/8319 from 4.8154/8200. However, the local currency weakened slightly against the British pound, falling to 5.4759/4963 from 5.4716/4969 previously.
Overall, the ringgit also outperformed its ASEAN regional currencies.
It strengthened against the Singapore dollar to 3.1995/2123 from 3.2015/2048, rose against the Indonesian rupiah to 249.6/250.7 from 250.0/250.4, and strengthened against the Philippine peso to 7.06/7.09 from 7.08/7.00 previously.
The ringgit also strengthened against the Thai baht to 12.8556/9145 from 12.8999/9174 at last Friday's close.
