US Dollar to Malaysian Ringgit exchange rate history 1971 to 2026: exports and the ringgit
One US Dollar bought 3.0318 MYR in 1971 and 4.0175 MYR in 2026. Exports and the ringgit. The series covers 56 years of annual data.
- 2026 avg
- 4.0175
- year to date
- Highest avg
- 4.5747
- 2024
- Lowest avg
- 2.1768
- 1980
- Traded range
- 2.1048 to 4.7975
- low 1978, high 2024
Source: Federal Reserve H.10 (DEXMAUS). Latest daily observation 2026-10-30.
Annual averages of daily observations.
USD/MYR in four numbers
- Change since 1971
- +41.2%
- 55 complete years
- Change over 10 years
- +9.7%
- 2015 to 2025
- Average annual change
- +1.0%
- standard deviation 9.4 points
- Largest drawdown
- 24.5%
- 1971 to 1979
USD/MYR since 1971
US Dollar to Malaysian Ringgit averaged 3.0318 MYR in 1971 and 4.2809 MYR in 2025, 41.2% higher across 55 complete years.
The annual average has ranged from 2.1768 in 1980 to 4.5747 in 2024. On individual trading days the series reached 2.1048 and 4.7975, a ratio of 2.3 to 1.
Exports, oil and the Malaysian ringgit
USD/MYR is an export-cycle pair. The Malaysian ringgit is a managed float. It was pegged at RM3.80 per dollar from 1998 to 2005.
Malaysia exports electronics, palm oil and energy products, so the ringgit tracks manufacturing demand and commodity prices. Export-led economies are sensitive to the global electronics and manufacturing cycle, so the currency often moves with orders, semiconductor prices and trade policy rather than with domestic consumption alone.
The ringgit was pegged at RM3.80 per dollar from 1998 to 2005, and the managed float that replaced it still leans against sharp moves. Over 55 complete years the average moved +41.2%, and the largest annual move was +53.8% in 1997.
What moves USD/MYR
USD: The US dollar is the world's main reserve currency and the base leg for most foreign exchange trading.
MYR: The Malaysian ringgit is a managed float. It was pegged at RM3.80 per dollar from 1998 to 2005.
For USD/MYR, the USD leg responds to Federal Reserve policy, US inflation and Treasury yields, safe-haven demand, while the MYR leg responds to oil and commodity prices, exports, Bank Negara Malaysia policy. The exchange rate is the market's attempt to balance the two sets of forces.
How wide is the USD/MYR range?
The highest single observation in the series was 4.7975 in 2024, and the lowest was 2.1048 in 1978. That is a ratio of 2.3 to 1 between the two extremes.
Annual averages are narrower than single-day levels because they smooth the intra-year swings. Even so, the average has ranged from 2.1768 to 4.5747, a spread that matters for anyone converting at different points in the cycle.
The five largest USD/MYR moves
Ranked by absolute year-end change, the five largest moves were 1997 (+53.8%), 2015 (+22.8%), 1973 (-13.1%), 1975 (+12.1%), 2010 (-9.9%). The biggest was 1997, when the rate moved from 2.5260 to 3.8850, a change of 53.8%.
Across 55 complete years the pair rose in 22 and fell in 26. The average annual change was +1.0% with a standard deviation of 9.4 percentage points, which is one way to compare its volatility with other pairs.
How to read the USD/MYR data
The annual figures are averages of the daily observations in Federal Reserve H.10 (DEXMAUS). Highs and lows are the most extreme single observations in each calendar year, not intraday highs. No figure on this page is estimated or interpolated.
USD/MYR history: the years that moved the rate
Each event below is dated and tied to one of the currencies in this pair.
- 1997 1997-07-02
Thai baht floats and the Asian crisis spreads
Thailand abandoned the baht's dollar peg on 2 July 1997. Pressure spread to other Asian currencies, including the Korean won, Malaysian ringgit, Singapore dollar and Taiwan dollar.
- 1998 1998-09-02
Malaysia pegs the ringgit at 3.80 per dollar
Malaysia fixed the ringgit at RM3.80 per US dollar and imposed selective capital controls during the Asian financial crisis. The peg lasted until 2005.
- 2008 2008-09-15
Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy
The collapse of Lehman Brothers triggered a global financial crisis, a flight into the US dollar and extreme volatility across currency markets.
- 2020 2020-03-15
Pandemic triggers a global dash for cash
The COVID-19 shock caused a worldwide sell-off and a surge in demand for US dollars, followed by large central bank intervention and emergency rate cuts.
USD/MYR annual average, 1971 to 2026
Annual average with the full trading range for each year. average high–low range
Source: Federal Reserve H.10 (DEXMAUS). Figures are annual averages of daily observations.
USD to MYR exchange rate by year
Every year since 1971: annual average, the year high and low, the year-end rate, and the change on the previous year.
| Year | Average | High | Low | Year end | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 3.0318 | 3.0867 | 2.8885 | 2.8998 | n/a |
| 1972 | 2.8085 | 2.9002 | 2.7586 | 2.8249 | -2.6% |
| 1973 | 2.4468 | 2.8249 | 2.2523 | 2.4540 | -13.1% |
| 1974 | 2.4070 | 2.5445 | 2.2753 | 2.3121 | -5.8% |
| 1975 | 2.4029 | 2.5947 | 2.2242 | 2.5907 | +12.1% |
| 1976 | 2.5422 | 2.6731 | 2.4802 | 2.5368 | -2.1% |
| 1977 | 2.4625 | 2.5336 | 2.3607 | 2.3685 | -6.6% |
| 1978 | 2.3168 | 2.4184 | 2.1048 | 2.2017 | -7.0% |
| 1979 | 2.1883 | 2.2365 | 2.1300 | 2.1880 | -0.6% |
| 1980 | 2.1768 | 2.3280 | 2.1110 | 2.2200 | +1.5% |
| 1981 | 2.3048 | 2.3885 | 2.2085 | 2.2420 | +1.0% |
| 1982 | 2.3356 | 2.3820 | 2.2415 | 2.3225 | +3.6% |
| 1983 | 2.3205 | 2.3685 | 2.2575 | 2.3350 | +0.5% |
| 1984 | 2.3428 | 2.4400 | 2.2770 | 2.4290 | +4.0% |
| 1985 | 2.4807 | 2.6010 | 2.4080 | 2.4200 | -0.4% |
| 1986 | 2.5831 | 2.6925 | 2.4180 | 2.5990 | +7.4% |
| 1987 | 2.5186 | 2.6060 | 2.4660 | 2.4890 | -4.2% |
| 1988 | 2.6190 | 2.7180 | 2.4950 | 2.7100 | +8.9% |
| 1989 | 2.7079 | 2.7670 | 2.6610 | 2.7010 | -0.3% |
| 1990 | 2.7049 | 2.7345 | 2.6810 | 2.7025 | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 2.7503 | 2.7960 | 2.6825 | 2.7220 | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 2.5463 | 2.7230 | 2.4882 | 2.6180 | -3.8% |
| 1993 | 2.5738 | 2.6950 | 2.5210 | 2.6950 | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 2.6237 | 2.7905 | 2.5465 | 2.5545 | -5.2% |
| 1995 | 2.5073 | 2.5620 | 2.3890 | 2.5400 | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 2.5154 | 2.5630 | 2.4835 | 2.5260 | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 2.8173 | 4.0000 | 2.4720 | 3.8850 | +53.8% |
| 1998 | 3.9254 | 4.7300 | 3.5450 | 3.8000 | -2.2% |
| 1999 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 3.7997 | 3.8000 | 0.0% |
| 2000 | 3.8000 | 3.8005 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 0.0% |
| 2001 | 3.8000 | 3.8005 | 3.7995 | 3.8000 | 0.0% |
| 2002 | 3.8000 | 3.8005 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 0.0% |
| 2003 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 0.0% |
| 2004 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 3.8000 | 0.0% |
| 2005 | 3.7869 | 3.8000 | 3.7460 | 3.7790 | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 3.6661 | 3.7800 | 3.5270 | 3.5270 | -6.7% |
| 2007 | 3.4354 | 3.5300 | 3.3057 | 3.3057 | -6.3% |
| 2008 | 3.3292 | 3.6380 | 3.1345 | 3.4500 | +4.4% |
| 2009 | 3.5231 | 3.7260 | 3.3560 | 3.4220 | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 3.2175 | 3.4420 | 3.0820 | 3.0820 | -9.9% |
| 2011 | 3.0564 | 3.2090 | 2.9370 | 3.1690 | +2.8% |
| 2012 | 3.0862 | 3.1980 | 2.9940 | 3.0570 | -3.5% |
| 2013 | 3.1488 | 3.3330 | 2.9620 | 3.2770 | +7.2% |
| 2014 | 3.2697 | 3.4970 | 3.1465 | 3.4950 | +6.7% |
| 2015 | 3.9041 | 4.4560 | 3.5150 | 4.2900 | +22.8% |
| 2016 | 4.1372 | 4.4845 | 3.8620 | 4.4845 | +4.5% |
| 2017 | 4.2982 | 4.4960 | 4.0440 | 4.0440 | -9.8% |
| 2018 | 4.0307 | 4.1980 | 3.8600 | 4.1300 | +2.1% |
| 2019 | 4.1416 | 4.2190 | 4.0600 | 4.0918 | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 4.2029 | 4.4450 | 4.0178 | 4.0178 | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 4.1439 | 4.2410 | 4.0045 | 4.1750 | +3.9% |
| 2022 | 4.3982 | 4.7460 | 4.1710 | 4.4002 | +5.4% |
| 2023 | 4.5577 | 4.7900 | 4.2405 | 4.5903 | +4.3% |
| 2024 | 4.5747 | 4.7975 | 4.1210 | 4.4695 | -2.6% |
| 2025 | 4.2809 | 4.5094 | 4.0430 | 4.0560 | -9.3% |
| 2026 YTD | 4.0175 | 4.1455 | 3.8864 | 4.0555 | -0.0% |
1971–2026 · 55 complete calendar years. Annual figures are averages of available daily observations. 2026 is year to date: the average is based on 209 published trading days through 2026-10-30.
Highest and lowest USD/MYR rates on record
Measured across 56 calendar years of annual data, 1971 to 2026.
USD/MYR history: common questions
What was the USD/MYR rate in 1971?
One USD averaged 3.0318 MYR in 1971, with a range of 2.8885 to 3.0867 and a year-end rate of 2.8998.
How is the USD/MYR rate calculated?
The annual figures are averages of daily observations in Federal Reserve H.10 (DEXMAUS). Highs and lows are the most extreme single observations in each calendar year.
What is the highest USD/MYR rate on record?
The highest annual average was 4.5747 in 2024. The highest single observation was 4.7975 in 2024.
What is the lowest USD/MYR rate on record?
The lowest annual average was 2.1768 in 1980. The lowest single observation was 2.1048 in 1978.
What was the biggest single-year move in USD/MYR?
1997 was the largest, at +53.8%. The year-end rate moved from 2.5260 to 3.8850.
What is the USD/MYR rate in 2026?
The 2026 average is 4.0175 MYR per USD, based on the year to date. The latest complete year, 2025, averaged 4.2809.
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