.JPG "An investor monitors the stock prices in the gallery of the RHB Investment Bank Bhd headquarters in Kuala Lumpur March 17, 2020. u00e2u20acu2022 Picture by Hari Anggara")
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 13 — Bursa Malaysia was in positive territory at mid-morning, lifted by buying support in heavyweight stocks, especially the financial and healthcare counters.
The local market was also tracking the upbeat performance of its regional peers which took the cue from the overnight rebound in Wall Street.
At 11.03am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 14.07 points to 1,555.47 from yesterday’s close of 1,556.64.
The key index opened 7.49 points higher at 1,564.13.
Market breadth was positive, with gainers trumping losers 634 to 298, while 365 counters were unchanged, 689 untraded and 33 others suspended.
Trading volume stood at 5.60 billion shares worth RM2.17 billion.
In a note, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd said the Wall Street continued to be on an uptrend with major indices closing within touching distance to record highs.
“Funds shifted from bonds to equities as the United States’ 10-year Treasury ended higher at 0.67 per cent, with the Dow Jones Index (DJI) Average climbing 290 points to near the 28,000 level.
“Hence, we expect regional markets to perform better today after days of consolidation,” it noted.
On the local front, Rakuten Trade anticipated the FBM KLCI to remain volatile due to the ongoing profit taking in glove counters, with the benchmark index expected to trend between 1,550 and 1,565.
Of the heavyweights, Maybank gained 15 sen to RM7.80, Public Bank rose 28 sen to RM17.68, Top Glove advanced 58 sen to RM25.08, Tenaga bagged four sen to RM11.18 and Hartalega increased 36 sen to RM16.48.
Among the most active, Luster added two sen to 15 sen, Priceworth improved one sen to 4.5 sen, Minho warrrant gained 12.5 sen to 19.5 sen while Pegasus and Sapura Energy were flat at four sen and 13.5 sen, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index increased 106.67 points to 11,254.53, the FBM Emas Shariah Index was 97.25 points higher at 13,080.04 and the FBMT 100 Index rose 101.0 points to 11,070.84.
The FBM 70 climbed 139.09 points to 14,451.31 and the FBM ACE advanced 139.09 points to 10,099.21.
Sector-wise, the Plantation Index added 42.37 points to 7,013.44, the Industrial Products and Services Index improved 1.12 point to 138.66 and the Financial Services Index surged 178.10 points at 13,373.39. — Bernama
