The Malaysian ringgit continued its uptrend to hit a 19 month high against the USD on 8 January.

The Malaysian ringgit continued its uptrend to hit a 19 month high against the USD on January 8. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

The currency is traded at 3.998 ringgits against the greenback.  It was up 70 basis points against 5 January’s close of 3.995.

It appreciated against a basket of other major currencies, including the Singapore dollar, the Japanese yen and euro but fell against the British pound.

The ringgit continued to rise against Vietnamese dong when one ringgit can buy nearly 5,700 VND.

According to Bernama, the Malaysian National News Agency, the note is being buoyed by the country’s strong trade surplus and expectations of a hike in the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) by Bank Negara Malaysia this year.

By the end of 2017, the Malaysian economy experienced a growth of 5.8%.  The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund forecast that the Southeast Asian economy can grow at 5.2% this year.

(Source: VNA)