Malaysia's Foreign Exchange Reserves Fall Slightly as Investors Remain Optimistic About Ringgit
KUALA LUMPUR, KOMPAS.com - Malaysia’s foreign exchange reserves slightly declined in mid-May 2026.
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) reported the country’s international reserves stood at $129.5 billion, or approximately Rp 2,295.8 trillion, assuming an exchange rate of Rp 17,728 per dollar.
This figure is lower than the end-April 2026 position of $129.7 billion, equivalent to Rp 2,299.3 trillion.
“The reserves are sufficient to finance 4.6 months of imports of goods and services, and equal to 0.9 times total short-term foreign debt,” BNM stated, cited from Bernama on Tuesday (26/5/2026).
The slight decline in reserves occurred amid heightened global uncertainty and international financial market volatility. Despite the minor drop, Malaysia’s current reserve level remains the highest in over a decade.
According to The Edge Malaysia, the latest reserve position is still the strongest since 2014.
The size of the reserves reflects the central bank’s ability to maintain currency exchange stability, finance imports, and meet foreign payment obligations.
BNM detailed the main components of Malaysia’s foreign exchange reserves as of 15 May 2026: foreign currency reserves of $113.5 billion, or around Rp 2,012.1 trillion.
Additionally, reserves at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stood at $1.3 billion, equivalent to Rp 23 trillion.
Gold reserves were recorded at $6.4 billion, or approximately Rp 113.5 trillion, while other reserve assets reached $2.4 billion, or Rp 42.5 trillion.
This composition shows that the majority of Malaysia’s foreign exchange reserves are still backed by foreign currency assets.
Foreign exchange reserves are typically used by central banks to maintain financial market stability and intervene when domestic currency pressures arise.
Previously, on 30 April 2026, Malaysia’s foreign exchange reserves were recorded at $129.7 billion, or approximately Rp 2,299.3 trillion.
At that time, BNM stated the reserves were sufficient to cover 4.7 months of imports and 0.9 times total short-term foreign debt.
Thus, the mid-May decline was relatively modest, at around $200 million, or Rp 3.5 trillion.
Throughout 2026, Malaysia’s foreign exchange reserves have shown moderate fluctuations.
In mid-April 2026, reserves stood at $128.8 billion, or approximately Rp 2,283.4 trillion, higher than the end-March level of $126.6 billion.
By end-April, reserves rose to $129.7 billion before dipping slightly to $129.5 billion in mid-May.
Amid global market volatility, the Malaysian ringgit strengthened against the US dollar in late May 2026 trading.