Malaysia and China are open to discussions about forming an Asian Monetary Fund as an alternative to the dominance of the US dollar, according to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. He proposed setting up the fund at the Boao forum in Hainan last week and said that Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed the idea. The move comes amid concerns over the impact of the strong dollar on local currencies in Asia, prompting discussions about mitigating risks through greater use of regional currencies. Malaysia's central bank is already working on enabling negotiations on trade matters using the ringgit and renminbi. Anwar also revealed that China had committed a record MYR170bn (USD38bn) to Malaysia, including a major investment in Zhejiang Geely Holding Group and Proton's automotive high-tech valley project.