Bursa Malaysia Opens Higher Ahead Of 2Q GDP Estimate
KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Wednesday, supported by improved investor sentiment ahead of Malaysia's advance estimate for second-quarter (2Q) gross domestic product (GDP), while tracking Wall Street's mostly positive performance.
At 9.15 am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 3.15 points to 1,723.09 from Tuesday's close of 1,719.94, after opening 0.72 of a point higher at 1,720.66.
On the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 272 to 142, with 338 counters unchanged, 1,951 untraded and 11 suspended.
Turnover stood at 372.28 million shares worth RM157.76 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of Equity Research Thong Pak Leng said Wall Street closed higher, mainly driven by a rebound in semiconductor stocks.
He said sentiment was also lifted by weaker-than-expected US inflation data for June, which eased concerns over a potential interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve. As a result, the US 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.587 per cent.
"Despite the ongoing tensions and uncertainty surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, which pushed Brent crude prices to almost US$85 per barrel, most regional markets performed relatively well, possibly underpinned by the return of foreign funds to Asia.
"We noticed this was attributed to renewed interest in Petronas Chemicals, which jumped 10 per cent yesterday. Whether such performance is sustainable remains to be seen; thus, we expect the index to hover within the 1,710-1,725 range today," he said.
Among heavyweight stocks, Maybank gained eight sen to RM11.08, CIMB rose two sen to RM7.79 and IHH Healthcare added one sen to RM8.46. Public Bank and Tenaga Nasional were flat at RM5.05 and RM14.40, respectively, while Petronas Chemicals eased six sen to RM4.73.
Among active counters, Tanco added seven sen to 38.5 sen, PA Resources gained 2.5 sen to 21 sen, NationGate rose three sen to 98.5 sen and Thriven Global edged up half a sen to 12 sen, while Enest slipped one sen to 12 sen.
Among the top gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries added 42 sen to RM44.82, Fraser & Neave rose 30 sen to RM29.58, Nestle gained 24 sen to RM90.74 and Allianz was 18 sen higher at RM20.82.
LPI Capital and Hong Leong Bank led the losers, falling eight sen each to RM15.30 and RM22.16, respectively. Press Metal declined seven sen to RM8.12, Petronas Gas fell six sen to RM17.82 and Gas Malaysia eased four sen to RM5.16.
Among the broader indices, the FBM Emas Index gained 37.25 points to 12,699.18, the FBMT Top 100 Index rose 36.87 points to 12,535.53, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased 42.65 points to 12,534.69.
The FBM Mid 70 Index climbed 112.36 points to 17,909.38, while the FBM ACE Index edged down 0.38 of a point to 4,861.68.
By sector, the Financial Services Index advanced 35.75 points to 20,275.25, the Plantation Index rose 75.55 points to 9,443.97 and the Energy Index increased 1.44 points to 775.09. The Industrial Products and Services Index, however, declined 0.54 of a point to 187.97.
-- BERNAMA