THE Malaysian ringgit has slumped against the US dollar to a level not seen since the Asian financial crisis – a quarter of a century ago. Against the Sing dollar, it has also hit fresh lows repeatedly over the past year.
As the beleaguered currency headed dangerously close to its all-time low of 4.885 against the USD in January 1998, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour issued a statement blaming “external factors”.
“The current level of the ringgit does not reflect the positive prospects of the Malaysian economy going forward,” he said.
To be fair, the ringgit is not the only underperforming Asia currency – but none has suffered such a severe retreat.
BT speaks…
