KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 14 — The ringgit is expected to rebound further next week following the just released figures for gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the fourth quarter and full year 2014.

Affin Hwang Investment Bank vice-president and head of retail research Datuk Dr Nazri Khan Adam Khan said there was strong, positive economic data to suggest Malaysia’s economic fundamentals remained intact.

“Malaysia’s GDP growth for the final quarter of 2014 exceeded expectations, recording a 5.8 per cent year-on-year expansion and outpacing the 5.6 per cent growth recorded in the third quarter,” he told Bernama.

“The result also beat the consensus estimate of economists of 5.0 per cent.”

For the week just ended, the currency market had a choppy trading pattern owing to uncertain external economic factors. Investors also remained sidelined on concerns over the European finance ministers’ meeting on Greece debt.

Nazri Khan said the possible mid-year rise in interest rates by the US Federal Reserve resulted in some investors withdrawing their greenback assets.

The ringgit weakened to 3.5780/5810 against the US dollar from the previous Friday’s 3.5460/5490, and traded mostly lower against other major currencies.

It depreciated against the Singapore dollar to 2.6371/6397 from 2.6335/6379 and improved against the yen to 3.0087/0115 from 3.0215/0243.

It was easier against the euro at 4.0879/0917 from 4.0588/0636, and fell against the pound to 5.5048/5108 from 5.4307/4364. — Bernama