The Malaysian ringgit has emerged as the best performing Asia currency on a quarter-to-date basis. It is up by 2.4 percent against the USD, followed by INR (1.2 percent) and PHP (0.9 percent).
Sentiment towards the MYR has improved considerably after Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) liberalised rules to give investors more flexibility to hedge in onshore market, and implemented measures to boost onshore liquidity such as the mandatory repatriation of export proceeds.
Further supporting recent MYR strength is the stabilisation in commodity prices, residing domestic political risk and perceived undervaluation as compared to its fundamentals.
"If anything, we look for the USD/MYR to remain well supported in the near-term at the 4.30-4.35 region," Commerzbank commented in its latest research report.
