| Dr M Proposes Single Trading Currency For East Asia |
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TOKYO, May 22 (Bernama) -- Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad says integration among East Asian economies can be stepped up by having a single trading currency, one that is confined to facilitate transactions between countries.
He said such a the single trading currency much like the dinar he proposed when he was prime minister would help to boost intra-regional trade while removing the attendant risks associated with exchange rate fluctuations.
"It will also eradicate currency speculation and manipulation from which Asian countries suffered, such as Malaysia during the 1997/98 financial crisis," he said during a panel discussion at the 14th Nikkei International Conference on "Future of Asia" here Thursday.
Dr Mahathir said the US dollar was the currency used for trading now but it was not stable and subject to manipulation.
He said the single trading currency could have its own exchange rate against national currencies from which the countries would be able to ascertain the value of their own currencies.
Meanwhile, Iskandar Malaysia's chief executive officer Datuk Ikmal Hijaz Hashim said there were more than 100 Japanese companies in the development region which have ploughed in billions of ringgit in investments.
He said during an earlier session at the conference that Japanese companies with their renowned technologies could join hands with capital investors from the Middle East to set up operations in emerging economies such as Malaysia, especially in areas such as Iskandar Malaysia.
-- BERNAMA
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