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KUALA LUMPUR, April 10 (Bernama) — The ringgit ended at a new 10-year high against the US dollar today following the surprise move by the Monetary Authority of Singapore to tighten its foreign exchange policy to contain inflation, a dealer said.

At 5pm, the ringgit traded firmer against the U.S. dollar at 3.1500/1530 compared with 3.1750/1785 at yesterday’s close.

The ringgit recorded its last 10-year high against the greenback on March 13 when it hit 3.1560.

“The market moved fast today, forcing the ringgit to another new record. This trend is likely to be sustained for quite some time,” the dealer said.

He attributed the ringgit’s appreciation to the strengthening of the Singapore dollar.

Singapore today moved to re-centre its foreign exchange policy band at the current firm level of its dollar nominal effective exchange rate.

The move is expected to be beneficial for Singapore’s economy as a strong currency will help cushion its economy from rising global commodity prices, dealers said. Singapore which has limited natural resources is highly dependent on imports.

The ringgit today declined against the Singapore dollar to 2.3194/3237 from 2.3007/3040 at yesterday’s closing and depreciated against the Japanese yen to 3.1328/1361 from 3.1044/1067.

Compared with the euro, the ringgit was also weaker at 4.9987/9041 from 4.9965/9014 yesterday but it strengthened against the pound sterling to 6.2294/2363 from 6.2597/2649.

– BERNAMA