OPR Holds Steady at 3%

Economic Research	20 January 2017
Malaysia
Economic Update
OPR Holds Steady at 3% BNM’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the OPR unchanged at 3% on 19 Jan, as expected. We are of the view that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is likely to maintain the overnight policy rate (OPR) at the current level of 3% in 2017. This is on account of the: i. Volatility in the currency market; ii. Expectations of sustained economic growth; iii. Manageable inflation rate. Malaysia’s economic growth is projected by the central bank to expand within 4-5% for 2017. This is in line with our forecast for the economy to grow 4% in 2017, albeit at the lower end of BNM’s forecast. Economist:  Vincent Loo Yeong Hong  | +603 9280 2172 Economist:  Aris Nazman Maslan  | +603 9280 2184