Ringgit Steady After Shamsiah's Speech

Spot USD/MYR trades at MYR4.6475, just shy of neutral levels, with participants contemplating yesterday's comments from BNM Gov Shamsiah and an uptick in palm oil prices.

• From a technical standpoint, bulls look for gains towards the 1998 all-time high of MYR4.8850, while bears keep an eye on the ascending 50-DMA, which kicks in at MYR4.5053.
• BNM Gov Shamsiah said in a speech Monday that ringgit depreciation is not a sign of any domestic economic crisis and asked businesses to avoid frontloading USD purchases as Bank Negara commits to ensuring sufficient liquidity in Malaysia's onshore FX market.
• The central bank chief added that inflation is expected to have peaked in Q3, while warning against headwinds to growth in 2023. She said the BNM will adjust the OPR in a gradual and measured way, but cannot afford to keep rates too low for too long like some other countries.
• Palm oil futures strengthened for the third consecutive day on Monday amid suspected activity of bargain hunters. High-frequency data from Intertek/AmSpec showed that Malaysia's palm oil shipments rose 9.7%-10.8% M/M last month, pointing to a recovery in overseas demand.
• There is little of note on the local data docket this week, outside of Friday's bi-weekly update on foreign reserves.