KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara’s international reserves rose to US$116.3bil (RM482bil) as of Aug 30 from US$111.3bil (RM462bil) as of Aug 13.

       “The higher reserves level mainly reflects an additional allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDR) to Malaysia of SDR 3.5 billion, equivalent to US$5bil (RM21bil), by the International Monetary Fund,” Bank Negara said in a statement yesterday.

       It said the SDR allocation would provide additional liquidity to the global financial system, bolster reserves, build confidence, and enhance the resilience of the world economy.“The reserves position is sufficient to finance 8.3 months of retained imports and is 1.3 times total short-term external debt,” the central bank said.