KUALA LUMPUR: BMI maintained its view that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) will leave the overnight policy rate (OPR) unchanged at 2.75 per cent for the rest of 2026 amid support from resilient domestic demand. "We are aligned with the bank and expect growth to slow from an estimated 4.6 per cent in 2025 to 4.1 per cent in 2026, the lower end of the BNM’s forecast of 4.0 per cent-4.5 per cent,” BMI said. BMI noted that the central bank had minimal concerns about inflation for now, as headline inflation has largely turned out as expected, averaging 1.4 per cent between January 2025 and November 2025. The research firm has also revised its foreign exchange forecast, now expecting the ringgit to reach RM4 per US dollar by the end of 2026. "With BNM standing pat, this means that yield differentials should move in the ringgit’s favour,” BMI said.

Source: The Star January 15, 2026 13:44 UTC