Bursa Malaysia Ends Marginally Higher On Improved Risk Appetite
By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed slightly higher today, in line with upbeat regional markets, as improved risk appetite was supported by softer US labour data, that reduced expectations of further Federal Reserve tightening and eased pressure on bond yields.
At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 0.88 of-a-point to 1,631.75 from last Friday’s close of 1,630.87.
The benchmark index, which opened 2.55 points higher at 1,633.42, moved between 1,630.95 and 1,640.46 throughout the trading session.
However, on the broader market, decliners surpassed gainers 599 to 564, while 523 counters were unchanged, 1,087 untraded and 24 suspended.
Turnover improved to 4.78 billion units worth RM2.89 billion, compared with 4.23 billion units worth RM2.70 billion last Friday.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said technology shares were among the main beneficiaries.
On Wall Street overnight, the S&P 500 gained 0.73 per cent to 7,722.72 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.19 per cent to 27,190.86.
For the local bourse, we remain slightly positive in the near term as the FBM KLCI remains in an oversold position following last week’s sharp correction, which should continue to attract bargain hunting, particularly in selected blue chips.
“Domestic liquidity also remains supportive, with local institutions recorded RM352.4 million of net buying last week, although persistent foreign selling remains a headwind,” he told Bernama.
Hence, Thong expects the benchmark index to stage a gradual recovery but remain volatile, with the FBM KLCI likely to trade within the 1,620-1,650 range this week.
Among the heavyweights, Public Bank rose five sen to RM4.71, CIMB perked up eight sen to RM7.73, Tenaga Nasional climbed four sen to RM13.00, Maybank eased two sen to RM10.00, and IHH Healthcare slipped four sen to RM7.76.
In active trade, V.S Industry rose three sen to 32 sen, Zetrix AI erased five sen to 6.5 sen, Jaks Resources inched down one sen to 17 sen, Excel Force MSC slid four sen to 17 sen, while NationGate was flat at RM1.83.
Among the top gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries increased RM1.00 to RM43.40, UMS Integration jumped 37 sen to RM9.40, Kelington garnered 49 sen to RM9.12, Nestle advanced 48 sen to RM90.00, and Samaiden surged 35 sen to RM3.19.
Top losers were led by Batu Kawan, which decined RM1.48 to RM18.98; United Plantations fell 32 sen to RM31.06; Hengyuan Refining Company trimmed 18 sen to RM3.46, while Kuala Lumpur Kepong and YTL Power International shaved off 14 sen each to RM20.86 and RM5.54, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index rose 61.56 points to 17,543.49, the FBM Emas Index added 19.78 points to 12,190.35, the FBM Top 100 Index went up 15.70 points to 11,973.38, the FBM Emas Shariah Index gained 8.69 points to 12,069.01, and the FBM ACE Index leapt 77.15 points to 5,606.61.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.45 of a point to 178.97, the Financial Services Index garnered 99.63 points to 19,140.14, while the Energy Index shaved off 3.09 points to 829.94, and the Plantation Index tumbled 125.52 points to 8,931.03.
The Main Market volume expanded to 3.13 billion units worth RM2.41 billion from 2.67 billion units worth RM2.34 billion last Friday.
Warrants turnover rose to 1.04 billion units worth RM208.20 million from 973.40 million units worth RM160.21 million previously.
The ACE Market volume climbed to 611.02 million units valued at RM267.66 million from 593.05 million units valued at RM205.21 million on Friday.
Meanwhile, consumer products and services counters accounted for 248.10 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (439.37 million), construction (183.56 million), technology (1.76 billion), financial services (49.02 million), property (106.95 million), plantation (22.08 million), real estate investment trusts (10.76 million), closed-end fund (152,900), energy (106.66 million), healthcare (103.20 million), telecommunications and media (22.11 million), transportation and logistics (40.92 million), utilities (38.48 million), and business trusts (162,200).
-- BERNAMA