KUALA LUMPUR, May 9 — Bursa Malaysia opened the morning session on Monday lower, tracking the decline on Wall Street over the weekend, coupled with weaker regional markets, a dealer said.
At 9.15am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 3.91 points to 1,560.43 from Friday’s close of 1,564.34.
The index opened 0.54 of-a-point lower at 1,563.80.
On the broader market, losers trounced gainers 341 to 126, while 261 counters were unchanged, 1,517 untraded and 17 others suspended.
Total turnover stood at 437.16 million worth RM160.19 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said Wall Street closed lower on Friday as sentiment remained jittery, and traders were unable to find a solid footing as buying activities diminished.
On the home front, he said the FBM KLCI was expected to see some bargain-hunting activities to emerge as the index was hovering close to its support level of around the 1,565 level.
"Nevertheless, the US futures remain weak, thus, we reckon it will be another volatile day, hence, anticipate the index to possibly hover within the 1,560-1,575 range today," he told Bernama.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank gained three sen to RM9.03, Public Bank lost five sen to RM4.54, Petronas Chemicals slid six sen to RM10.14, and IHH Healthcare up two sen to RM6.48.
Of the actives, Serba Dinamik contracted 21.5 sen to 13.5 sen, Pertama Digital added three sen to 93.5 sen, while Hibiscus Petroleum and Bumi Armada stayed flat at RM1.40 and 43 sen, respectively.
On the index board, FBM ACE shed 46.06 points to 5,451.20, FBM 70 dipped 36.91 points to 13,349.16, FBM Emas Index narrowed 31.32 points to 11,174.24, FBMT 100 Index shrank 27.80 points to 10,827.71, and FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 34.64 points to 11,659.11.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index eased 17.28 points to 16,658.55, the Industrial Products and Services Index was 0.68 of-a-point lower at 203.42, and the Plantation Index slipped 78.11 points to 8,454.99. — Bernama
