Investors keep to the sidelines

The ringgit, already the worst-performing currency in the region so far this year, fell 0.9% yesterday to 4.3435 against the US dollar. The exchange rate yesterday was the weakest since 1998, when the currency was pegged to the US dollar at the height of the Asian financial crisis.

PETALING JAYA: Global investors are increasingly losing their risk appetite for stocks.

Shares on the local bourse took another big hit yesterday, as the sell-off in Asian equities continued. The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KL Composite Index tumbled 22.20 points, or 1.4%, to 1,613.17 points.