KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 30 ― Bursa Malaysia’s key index turned slightly higher at mid-morning today, lifted by glove makers.

However, the overall sentiment on the broader market remained cautious following the easier Wall Street overnight performance. 

At 11.05am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 1.37 point to 1,636.36 after opening at 1,635.6.  

Market breadth was easier as losers edged past gainers 497 to 452, while 444 counters were unchanged, 735 untraded and 62 others suspended.

Volume stood at 3.48 billion units worth RM1.36 billion.

Among the heavyweights, Top Glove increased nine sen to RM6.10, Hartalega jumped 12 sen to RM12.06, MISC advanced six sen to RM6.84, Maxis added three sen to RM5.08, Supermax appreciated eight sen to RM6.14 and Public Bank gained two sen to RM20.72.

Meanwhile, Hong Leong Bank was flat at RM18.48, Maybank fell five sen to RM8.53, TNB shed six sen to RM10.52, while Petronas Chemicals and IHH Healthcare went down one sen each to RM7.36 and RM5.73, respectively.

As for the actives, Sealink expanded 5.5 sen to 22.5 sen, MTouche, Parkson and Straits Inter Logistics went up one sen each to eight sen, 20.5 sen, and 19.5 sen, respectively, while Dynaciate was flat at 13 sen and Techna-X eased one sen to 16 sen.      

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index improved 2.93 points to 11,809.62, the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased 19.33 points to 13,197.87, the FBMT 100 Index was 1.09 point lower at 11,557.57, the FBM 70 went down 43.43 points to 15,180.5 and the FBM ACE reduced 3.47 points to 10,698.92.   

Meanwhile, the Plantation Index eased 0.92 of-a-point to 7,393.21, the Financial Services Index discounted 26.13 points to 15,427.28, and the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.12 of-a-point to 175.93. ― Bernama