THE Malaysian ringgit has fallen to its lowest level in nearly 6 years and economists are expecting the downtrend to continue gradually due to sluggish commodity prices and the hawkish pivot by the US Federal Reserve.

The currency traded at RM4.4850 against the greenback as at 6pm on Monday (Aug 22), the lowest since January 2017 (RM4.4975). The country’s currency has depreciated 7.3 per cent year-to-date, from RM4.1763 on Jan 1, 2022.

Against the Singapore dollar, the ringgit firmed at RM3.2159 after reaching its all-time low at RM3.2573 on Aug 10. The ringgit has depreciated close to 3.4 per cent year-to-date.