KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 5 — The ringgit fell the most in two weeks after the European Central Bank tightened terms for Greece’s access to financing, damping risk appetite as oil resumed its decline overnight.

The ECB said it will no longer accept Greek bonds as collateral for loans, citing doubt over the new government’s commitment to reform pledges made under the previous administration.

Brent declined 6.5 per cent yesterday in its biggest loss since November, before rising 1.3 per cent in Asia today.

Malaysia is Asia’s only major oil exporter.

“There is generalized risk aversion after the ECB essentially yanked the liquidity line,” said Vishnu Varathan, a Singapore-based economist at Mizuho Bank Ltd.

“The drop in oil prices” was also weighing on the ringgit, he said.

The ringgit retreated as much as 0.8 per cent and traded 0.5 per cent lower at 3.5833 a dollar as of 9:35am in Kuala Lumpur, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The currency posted its biggest gain yesterday since September 2013.

A report due at noon in Kuala Lumpur may show Malaysia’s exports increased 1 per cent in December from a year earlier, after gaining 2.1 per cent the previous month, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey.

The trade surplus is forecast to narrow to RM9 billion from RM11.1 billion.

China, Malaysia’s second-biggest overseas market, reduced the amount of cash lenders must set aside as reserves as global central banks ease policy to spur economic growth and ward off deflation. The reserve-requirement ratio was cut by 0.5 per centage point effective Thursday.

Malaysia’s sovereign bonds were little changed, with the 10-year yield at 3.77 per cent, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

It dropped four basis points, or 0.04 percentage point, yesterday. — Bloomberg