KUALA LUMPUR (Mar 16): The possibility of one individual influencing the ringgit is very small as the average daily market activity is huge, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who is also the Finance Minister.
"The average daily market activity is huge - it amounted to US$11.8 billion in 2014. Thus, based on such a huge amount of transaction, the possibility of any (single) individual influencing the ringgit is very small," said Najib Razak in a written reply today to a question by Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng last Thursday.
Lim had asked on the status of investigations on The Edge Media Group owner Datuk Tong Kooi Ong, who was alleged by a blog in January to have manipulated the currency for his own gain and to sabotage the national economy.
Najib said based on the ringgit’s current movement, the national economy has not been affected by any monetary or economic sabotages, and that the country remains on track for sustainable growth, supported by strong fundamentals, controlled inflation rate and high international reserves.
"In addition, the regulators, including Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), are always carefully monitoring any actions that could sabotage the national economy," he said.
Najib attributed the recent weakening of the ringgit to external factors, primarily the strengthening of the US economy.
He also noted that the ringgit was not the only casualty and that other currencies in the region also contracted between 1.1% and 10.1% against the US dollar between September 2014 and March 5, 2015.
The strong US dollar is due to the improving economic prospects in the US and the probable interest rate hike in the US, which has attracted the interest of investors to invest in US-dollar assets.
“Besides, commodity exporters, including Malaysia, are also impacted by the fall of the world crude oil price," he explained.
He added that in monitoring the currency movement, the government, through BNM, was always watchful of activities that could affect the foreign exchange market to ensure that the ringgit was not open for speculation.