The central bank said the exchange rate of RM4.98 to US$1 as quoted by Google does not reflect the actual trading.

“As this is the second instance of misreporting, BNM will be engaging Google for an explanation of how the inaccurate reporting occurred and the corrective measures taken given that this is a recurring issue that has afflicted Malaysia and other countries in the past few months,” BNM said in a statement.

Referring to the first incident of misreporting by Google on Feb 6, the central bank said it had issued a “stern” warning letter to the company at that time.

“The exchange rate is a market-sensitive data and any inaccurate reporting and circulation of unverified data can cause serious implications on financial markets,” BNM said.

It added that, yesterday, the ringgit to USD exchange rate was quoted at RM4.7015 at 9am and RM4.7045 at 5pm, with an intraday high of RM4.7075 in the onshore interbank market for ringgit, as published on the BNM website.

The ringgit has strengthened against the greenback by 0.76% since the beginning of March, it said.

The central bank reminded the public to rely on official data and exercise caution in using, circulating or speculating on unverifiable sources as a reference for the ringgit.