LATEST NEWS   MIC confirms contesting four seats in Johor polls, seats in Negeri Sembilan still under discussion - MIC VP | Former IKRAM member charged with 158 counts of using position to obtain bribes amounting to RM98.27 million | The transfer of TERAJU to the Prime Minister's Department opens up vast opportunities for the agency to realise the PuTERA35 agenda - Akmal Nasrullah | ECRL fares going viral are just speculation, actual rates have not been finalised - MRL | Elsa Bhd debuts at 25 sen on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia, a two-sen premium to its 23-sen IPO price, with 11.08 mln shares traded | 
MARKET • 21/05/2026 10:08 PM

Ringgit Closes Higher Against US Dollar, Regional Peers

By Abdul Hamid A Rahman

KUALA LUMPUR, May 21 (Bernama) -- The ringgit closed higher against the US dollar today, supported by Malaysia’s favourable domestic fundamentals.

At 6 pm, the ringgit appreciated to 3.9595/9630 versus the greenback from 3.9675/9715 at Wednesday’s close.

Ad Banner
Ad Banner

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the ringgit should be in a better position as the country continues to record a current account surplus, while the government remains committed to reducing the fiscal deficit.

He said news on the possible finalisation of negotiations between the United States and Iran had resulted in lower crude oil prices, while the US Dollar Index (DXY) stabilised at around 99 points.

“However, some central banks remain under pressure to adjust interest rates to stem currency depreciation and contain inflationary pressure, especially in economies facing fiscal and current account deficits,” he told Bernama.

Ad Banner
Ad Banner
Ad Banner

At the close, the ringgit traded mostly lower against a basket of major currencies.

It strengthened versus the Japanese yen to 2.4906/4929 from 2.4942/4969 at Wednesday’s close, but slipped against the euro to 4.6037/6078 from 4.5975/6022 yesterday, and slid against the British pound to 5.3220/3267 from 5.3089/3143 previously.

At the same time, the local currency traded mostly higher against regional peers.

It appreciated against the Singapore dollar to 3.0967/0997 from 3.0969/1003 at the close on Wednesday, rose against the Thai baht to 12.1304/1468 from 12.1341/1516 yesterday, edged up against the Indonesian rupiah to 224.1/224.4 from 224.7/225.0 previously, and remained flat against the Philippine peso at 6.43/6.44.

-- BERNAMA

 

 

More News

Categories

Tags