KUALA LUMPUR – The ringgit continued to slide against the United States dollar, breaching the all-time low that was recorded during the Asian financial crisis period in 1998.
This was due to continuous local and global economic headwinds, analysts said.
As of 6pm, the ringgit was traded at 4.7270/7290, which was lower than the 4.7250 level recorded on January 7, 1998. At yesterday’s closing, the local note was traded at 4.7180/7220.
Meanwhile, Bursa Malaysia shook off early losses to end the trading day higher for the fifth straight day, with the benchmark index putting on 1.60% driven by buying interests in selected heavyweights led by Petronas Chemicals and Public Bank.
The benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) has gained a total of 55.25 points over the last five trading days.
At 5pm, the market bellwether surged 22.62 points to settle at its intraday high of 1,437.72 from yesterday’s close of 1,415.10.
The FBM KLCI opened 0.38 of-a-point easier at 1,414.72, but thereafter hit an intraday low of 1,411.74, before picking up steam throughout the day to close higher. – Bernama, October 20, 2022
