Malaysian ringgit near 10-month low on bond sell-off

SINGAPORE - Malaysia's ringgit fell more than 1 per cent to a near 10-month low on Monday as most government bond prices extended losses, while investors remained cautious of possible measures by the central bank to defend the currency.

The ringgit slid to 4.3250 per dollar, its weakest since Jan 22, as of 0101 GMT. Malaysia's five-year government bond yield hit 3.707 per cent, the highest since February.

Bank Negara Malaysia on Saturday said the central bank was taking measures to re-enforce existing rules that are in place to prohibit facilitation of offshore trading of the ringgit.