Malaysia’s ringgit slid to a nine-year low after a US jobs report beat forecasts, backing the case for the Federal Reserve to start tightening monetary policy as money flows out of the nation’s stocks.

The dollar rose against 13 of the world’s 16 major currencies on Friday after data showed US employers created 280,000 positions in May, the most in five months and exceeding the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey for a 226,000 gain.

Malaysian exports contracted in April for a third month this year, and the trade surplus narrowed, figures showed last week. Overseas investors pulled the biggest amount of funds from the country’s equities in May, the most this year.

“Strong US non-farm payrolls sent the dollar rallying across the board,” said Khoon Goh, a Singapore-based senior foreign-exchange strategist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. “Last Friday’s disappointing Malaysian export data is also pressuring the ringgit.”

The currency weakened 1.1 percent to 3.7608 versus the greenback as of 9.02am in Kuala Lumpur, the biggest drop in Asia, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It earlier fell to 3.7653, the lowest level since January 2006. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index advanced 0.8 percent Friday and was little changed on today.

Malaysia is vulnerable to outflows spurred by higher US interest rates as central bank data show global funds hold 32 percent of the nation’s government bonds, compared with 18 percent for Thailand. Global funds sold a net RM2.5 billion of the nation’s shares last month, stock exchange data show.

The nation’s exports dropped 8.8 percent in April from a year earlier, worse than the median estimate of economists for a 5.5 percent contraction. The trade surplus shrank to RM6.89 billion from RM7.82 billion.

Government bonds dropped, with the 10-year yield rising two basis points to 4.10 percent. It climbed 16 basis points last week, the biggest increase since the debt was sold in March.

- Bloomberg