SHAH ALAM: The government and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) are expected to reveal the findings of a joint study on the impact of the depreciation of the ringgit by mid-January, said International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.

Over the last few months, the ringgit has weakened against the US dollar to 3.4875 yesterday, from 3.1415 on Aug 28. Falling crude oil prices led to expectations of weaker economic growth and lower government revenue, causing the slide.

However, Mustapa said the Malaysian economy remains resilient.

“Our fundamentals are strong, but we need to crunch the details,” Mustapa told reporters at the opening of the Linde Regional Centre yesterday.

Mustapa was commenting on the recent announcement that the government would conduct a comprehensive study involving his ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister’s Department, together with BNM.

Mustapa said “2014 is not an issue”, but challenges are seen coming in 2015.

These challenges include government expenditure, as Malaysia — a net crude oil exporter — could see lower income from oil exports.

On a separate matter, Mustapa — who made reference to the appointment of Aer Lingus chief executive officer (CEO) Christoph Mueller to helm the ailing national airline — said the country should accept foreigners as they bring with them knowledge and training to enrich the talent pool and enable knowledge transfer.

On Dec 5, Khazanah Nasional Bhd announced Mueller’s appointment as Malaysian Airline System Bhd CEO-designate and non-executive director, which will take effect on Jan 1, 2015. His contract as CEO of Aer Lingus, the national airline of Ireland, ends on May 1, 2015.

Khazanah said Mueller has a strong record of transformation and turnarounds in the aviation industry.

Meanwhile, Linde Malaysia Holdings Bhd managing director Ashley Mills said the supplier of industrial gases and welding equipment plans to set up more plants in the region. Mills said Linde, which manages 55 plants in 10 countries across the region, is targeting to double the number to 110 by 2020.

In Malaysia, Mills said the company has allocated a capital expenditure of RM500 million over the next five years, adding that Linde is in talks to set up its next facility in Selangor. He declined to give more details on the proposed plant.

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on December 17, 2014.