Do you like a stronger Ringgit? I do. Especially because I love travelling. Well, bad news for us, at least for 2019. Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) expects the ringgit to continue to depreciate against the US dollar next year, as the greenback continues to grow stronger and also due to other external uncertainties. Our BNM Governor, Datuk Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus informed that the ringgit has depreciated by 2.5% against the US dollar in the third quarter of 2018. On a year-to-date basis, our ringgit has fallen 3.35% to the US dollar. She said, “This is something that is not only unique to Malaysia, but all the other regional economies would be affected by the strong US dollar and that is where we do expect that the regional currencies, together with the ringgit, will continue to depreciate.” This is the article in TheEdge Markets.
A weaker Ringgit due to a stronger greenback (2019…)
However, she added, “Nevertheless, because of the deep financial market that we have and the big pool of strong domestic institutional investors, that will ensure orderly adjustments in both the foreign exchange market and in our currency.” In terms of comparison with other regional currencies, Thai Baht and Singapore dollar have appreciated by 0.3% and 0.1% respectively against the US dollar this year, while the Indonesian rupiah and Philippines peso depreciated by 13.1% and 7.3% respectively. There is also that usual concern about the contagion risk from vulnerable emerging market economies. “Emerging market risks increased following concerns on Turkey and Argentina, the escalation of the US-China trade war in September and the US Federal Reserve (Fed) rate hike expectation during the quarter, and the eventual Fed rate hike on Sept 27,” she said. This is the article in TheEdge Markets.
I guess we just have to look at this from the positive side. Our exports are now cheaper and hopefully Malaysian companies can take this opportunity to get new markets too. By the way, let us always remember that currency is used for TRADE. This meant that countries with huge deficits should have a weaker currency and not stronger. As for travelling, please carry on. If we are in Hong Kong, eating after 230pm usually gets cheaper rates. (after the busy hours). If we are in Australia, many items are on discount after 6pm if I remember correctly because they do not like to eat ‘yesterday’ bread or muffin. Let’s not let 3.35 percent stop us from carrying out what we intend to do yeah. By the way, buying a property in KL is now cheaper too, for foreigners who are reading this article.
written on 19 Nov 2018
Next suggested article: Highest since October 2018. Positive for the ringgit probably?
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