Malaysia needs to continue to focus on its strong fundamentals and pursue fiscal reforms to keep the economy competitive and support the ringgit against the surging US dollar, the World Bank said.

Apurva Sanghi (above), the bank’s lead economist for Malaysia, said although the depreciation of the ringgit versus the greenback is a cause for concern, it is not a domestic issue but rather an international one.

He said the US currency’s appreciation was largely due to...