KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 5): Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) international reserves remained unchanged at US$124.1 billion as at Nov 28, 2025, holding at the same level recorded two weeks earlier, according to the central bank’s latest update on Friday. 

This marks the strongest reserves position since 2014, underscoring the central bank’s capacity to finance 4.8 months of imports of goods and services and cover 0.9 times the nation’s short-term external debt. 

Short-term external borrowings are defined as debts with maturities of one year or less. They largely comprise foreign currency liquidity operations by resident banks, as well as borrowings by multinational corporations — including foreign banks — from their overseas parent entities. 

These borrowings are typically serviced through borrowers’ own external assets in the normal course of business, and therefore do not place claims on BNM’s reserves. 

Breaking down the components, foreign currency reserves edged up to US$109.8 billion from US$109.6 billion on Nov 14. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reserve position held steady at US$1.3 billion, while special drawing rights (SDRs) were unchanged at US$5.9 billion. 

Gold holdings also stayed flat at US$4.8 billion. Other reserve assets, however, eased slightly to US$2.3 billion from US$2.5 billion. 

BNM releases its international reserves data on a fortnightly basis.