KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 ― Bursa Malaysia has continued its negative tone this morning as investors are likely to stay on the sidelines ahead of the United States (US) Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, said an analyst.

At 9.15am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 6.25 points to 1,451.41 from yesterday’s close of 1,457.66.

The index opened 5.03 points weaker at 1,452.63.

On the broader market, decliners edged past gainers 192 to 183, while 300 counters were unchanged, 1,699 untraded, and 11 suspended.

Turnover stood at 308.82 million units worth RM160.11 million.

In a note, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said it expects the US Federal Reserve to maintain its interest rate for the rest of 2023, given that the US inflation is on the decline.

"Although Wall Street’s negative performance could spill over towards the local front, buying support could emerge within selected sectors as the market may focus on the blueprints recently announced by the government for trading opportunities,” it said.

The brokerage firm said investors may shift their focus to sectors related to the National Energy Transition Roadmap and New Industrial Master Plan 2030 blueprints, namely the industrial products and renewable energy industries.

They could also start positioning themselves ahead of Budget 2024 and look into opportunities within the construction, property and building materials segments, it said.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank and TNB lost two sen each to RM8.89 and RM10.12, respectively, and Petronas Chemicals shed four sen to RM7.26, while both Public Bank and CIMB gained one sen to RM4.21 and RM5.58, respectively.

Of the actives, Iskandar Waterfront City increased 6.5 sen to 75.5 sen and Ekovest added 1.5 sen to 57 sen, while Tanco and Mercury Securities eased half-a-sen each to 55 sen and 29.5 sen, respectively, and Kinergy Advancement was flat at 34.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index went down 29.58 points to 10,736.42, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 32.81 points to 10,403.95, the FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 12.27 points to 10,987.66, and the FBM ACE Index decreased 14.06 points to 5,191.87, while the FBM 70 Index gained 7.18 points to 14,255.89.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index trimmed 83.57 points to 16,236.39, the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 0.17 of-a-point to 173.52, the Plantation Index contracted 6.39 points to 6,950.28, and the Energy Index went down 1.92 points to 905.85. ― Bernama