KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 18 ― Bursa Malaysia opened higher today but retreated thereafter due to the extended profit taking in selected heavyweights, amidst mostly weaker sentiment in the regional bourses, dealers said.

At 9.34am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slipped 1.67 points to 1,446.31 from 1,447.98 at yesterday’s close.

The key index opened 1.25 points better at 1,449.23.

On the broader market, losers surpassed gainers 342 to 154, while 310 counters were unchanged, 1,542 untraded and 29 others suspended.

Turnover stood at 546.91 million units worth RM219.92 million.

In a note today, Malacca Securities said investors are focusing on Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2023 (2Q 2023) announcement today.

"We believe the market may cheer should the reported number that came above the Bloomberg consensus expectations of 3.6 per cent year-on-year growth,” it said.

At the same time, the brokerage also expects the property sector to extend its positive movement with most property players turning more optimistic during the first half of 2024 (1H2024), according to the Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia.

"The strong vehicles data may boost automotive-related stocks, while the energy sector may advance in line with higher crude oil prices,” it said.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank rose 2.0 sen to RM8.99, Petronas Chemicals improved 1.0 sen to RM6.80 and Public Bank was flat at RM4.16, while CIMB and Tenaga Nasional declined 6.0 sen each to RM5.58 and RM9.89, respectively.

Of the actives, Hong Seng eased half-a-sen to 6.0 sen, while Tanco went up 1.0 sen to 56 sen, Parkson added 3.0 sen to 25 sen and Awanbiru advanced 2.0 sen to 19.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 18.10 points lower at 10,661.47, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 16.32 points to 10,348.34, the FBM Emas Shariah Index fell 15.37 points to 10,862.05, the FBM 70 Index decreased 40.94 points to 14,097.31 and the FBM ACE Index shed 55.69 points to 5,257.85.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index erased 26.22 points to 16,267.24, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 0.23 of-a-point to 167.44, and the Energy Index slid 0.96 of-a-point to 813.91, while the Plantation Index rose 30.67 points to 9,951.53. ― Bernama