The ringgit started trading on Friday with strengthening momentum against major world currencies, including the US dollar, as the market reacted positively to Malaysia's trade data for March which showed encouraging performance.
At 10:22 am, the ringgit was at 3.9690 against the US dollar, down 0.23% since it opened early Friday in the Asian session.
According to data released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia on April 20, Malaysia's total trade for March 2026 increased by 9.3 percent year-on-year to RM273.0 billion, compared to RM249.8 billion in the same period last year.
This growth was driven by a strong increase in both the country's exports and imports.
Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd Chief Economist, Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, described Malaysia's current economic performance as remaining resilient, with the preliminary estimate of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the first quarter of 2026 expected to exceed the five percent mark.
He also explained that the latest international trade data showed Malaysia's nominal exports grew by 12.7% in the first quarter of 2026, higher than the 11% growth in the previous quarter.
According to him, this situation puts the Malaysian economy in a strong position to face current challenges, including the impact of oil price shocks following the conflict in Iran.
Foreign fund flows in the capital market also remained positive, thus indicating better demand for the ringgit among foreign investors.
He added that despite geopolitical uncertainties, especially related to the war in Iran, the ringgit is expected to continue to gain support.
In fact, the ringgit also remains among the best-performing currencies in Asia this year, ranking second after the Chinese yuan.
Meanwhile, the ringgit also recorded a strengthening against several other major currencies at the opening of trading.
It rose against the British pound to 5.3348/3429 from 5.3504/3558, strengthened against the euro to 4.6288/6358 from 4.6343/6390, and rose against the Japanese yen to 2.4800/4839 from 2.4809/4836.
Among ASEAN regional currencies, the ringgit showed mixed performance.
It strengthened against the Singapore dollar to 3.1004/1053 from 3.1041/1075, and rose against the Thai baht to 12.1911/2175 from 12.2066/2242.
However, the ringgit remained stable against the Indonesian rupiah at 229.2/229.6 and was unchanged against the Philippine peso at 6.55/6.56.
