Bursa Malaysia Opens Higher On Positive Wall Street Momentum
By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Tuesday, in sync with Wall Street's positive overnight momentum, as muted oil prices following a recovery in West Asia crude exports offset a continued sell-off in US Treasuries.
At 9.21 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 7.14 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 1,638.89 from Monday’s close of 1,631.75.
The index opened 4.63 points higher at 1,636.38.
On the broader market, gainers outpaced losers 272 to 202, with 364 counters unchanged, 1,944 untraded and 13 suspended.
Turnover stood at 440.19 million units worth RM164.76 million.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said Wall Street’s positive overnight performance saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite advance by 0.2 per cent, 0.7 per cent and 1.1 per cent, respectively, while the Brent crude oil and 10-year Treasury yield reached US$100.3 per barrel and 5.3 per cent, respectively.
“Locally, we expect investors to remain selective ahead of the Budget 2027 announcement, with attention centred on potential beneficiary sectors.
“Mechanical and electrical players could continue to see buying interest, supported by the government’s emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s 500-kilovolt National Grid Backbone project, favouring companies such as MN Holdings Bhd, Southern Cable Group Bhd, and Powerwell Holdings Bhd,” it said in a research note today.
In addition, Malacca Securities said efforts to reduce non-revenue water could also remain in focus, potentially benefiting companies such as ISF Group Bhd and Ranhill Utilities Bhd.
“Lastly, 99 Speed Mart Retail could see renewed buying interest on expectations of higher consumer assistance allocations under Sumbangan Asas Rahmah and Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah,” it said.
Meanwhile, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said Wall Street closed firmer, with the Nasdaq notching a fresh record high as traders decided to look past prevailing headwinds and instead focus on AI-related stocks to negate the impacts from escalating bond yields.
“For today, we expect the index to hover within the range of 1,630-1,640 as the local bourse may be ripe for some bargain hunting activity,” he told Bernama.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank and Tenaga Nasional perked up four sen each to RM10.04 and RM13.04, CIMB put on three sen to RM7.76, IHH Healthcare increased two sen to RM7.78, while Public Bank was flat at RM4.71.
In active trade, Zetrix AI inched up half a sen to seven sen, Divfex rose one sen to 16.5 sen, Ramssol gained 2.5 sen to 86 sen, while ACE market debutant SLGC eased 3.5 sen to 24.5 sen, and Dagang NeXchange inched down half a sen to 50 sen.
Among the top gainers, Batu Kawan expanded RM1.24 sen to RM20.22, Nestle and Kuala Lumpur Kepong gained 20 sen each to RM90.20 and RM21.06, Petronas Dagangan perked up 18 sen to RM19.38, and Genting Plantations strengthened 16 sen to RM5.82.
HeiTech Padu led the decliners, falling seven sen to 88 sen, Thong Guan Industries, Sunway Construction Group, and Allianz Malaysia slipped six sen each to RM1.44, RM7.55 and RM20.74, and UMS Integration shrank four sen to RM9.36.
On the index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index gained 41.29 points to 17,584.78, the FBM Emas Index appreciated 44.30 points to 12,234.65, the FBM Top 100 Index widened 46.09 points to 12,019.47, the FBM Emas Shariah Index advanced 39.24 points to 12,108.25, and the FBM ACE Index improved 7.73 points to 5,614.34.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up 0.16 of a point to 179.13, the Energy Index gained 1.78 points to 831.72, the Financial Services Index jumped 56.47 points to 19,196.61, and the Plantation Index gained 73.78 points to 9,004.81.
-- BERNAMA