KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 24 — Bursa Malaysia is expected to trade lower next week in the absence of market catalysts, with the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) index set to move between the 1,420 and 1,450 levels.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the weaker crude oil and commodity prices, which had taken a toll on energy and commodity-related shares, might continue to weigh on market sentiment.

"We prefer to stay cautious over the short term although bargain hunting may prevail as the FBM KLCI is nearing oversold,” he told Bernama.

UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of wealth research and advisor Mohd Sedek Jantan said the upcoming Budget 2023 could serve as a near-term catalyst to enhance the competitiveness of businesses and fortify the nation’s resilience to future shocks.

"This will help to improve companies’ earnings and increase the attractiveness of shares,” he added.

For the week just ended, Malaysian stocks began the week in the red, mirroring losses on global markets as recession fears and concerns about further rate hikes weighed on investor optimism.

"The FBM KLCI continued to fall due to persistent selling in heavyweight stocks. Although the bourse closed slightly higher on Tuesday, buoyed by widespread bargain hunting, the momentum was not sustained.

"The selling pressure persisted in the following days, causing the FBM KLCI to end the week in the red due to deteriorating equity market sentiment following the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) hefty third consecutive 75 basis points rate hike,” Mohd Sedek said.

On a Friday-to-Thursday basis, the FBM KLCI fell 42.33 points to 1,424.98 from 1,496.53, mainly due to the US rate hike decision, which had generated widespread bearish sentiment on regional markets, diminishing the likelihood of a soft landing for the US economy.

For the index board, the FBM Emas Index was down by 277.20 points to 10,197.38, the FBMT 100 Index lost 281.03 points to 9,933.62, the FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 340.62 points to 10,238.20, the FBM ACE was 67.12 points lower at 4,766.63 and the FBM 70 dipped 295.79 points to 12,431.79.

Sector-wise, the Plantation Index decreased 193.41 points to 6,664.71, the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 9.27 points to 172.20, the Financial Services Index shaved 222.91 points to 16,268.57 and the Energy Index slid 24.98 points to 712.64.

Weekly turnover rose to 10.66 billion units worth RM8.32 billion from 10.52 billion units worth RM7.59 billion in the previous week.

The Main Market volume was higher at 7.02 billion shares valued at RM7.06 billion from 6.91 billion shares valued at RM6.22 billion in the previous week.

Warrants volume expanded to 1.13 billion units worth RM158.78 million from 807.75 million units worth RM121.09 million last week.

The ACE Market volume shrank to 2.52 billion shares valued at RM1.10 billion from 2.8 billion shares valued at RM1.24 billion the week before. — Bernama