KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 16 ― Bursa Malaysia started the day on a low note despite Wall Street's gains overnight, amidst prevailing cautious market sentiments ahead of the 15th general election (GE15) this Saturday.
At 9.05am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell by 8.86 points to 1,441.68 from yesterday's close of 1,450.54.
The market bellwether opened 3.04 points easier at 1,447.50.
On the broader market, decliners led gainers 153 to 105, while 188 counters were unchanged, 1,879 untraded and 13 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 88.74 million units worth RM40.90 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd’s vice-president of Equity Research, Thong Pak Leng said the Wall Street closed in the positive territory as many believed that inflation in the United States (US) may have peaked.
“The latest US producer price index saw a slower than expected increase that prompted the US 10-year yield to dip below 3.78 per cent. The DJI Average gained 56 points while the Nasdaq jumped by 162 points.
“As for the local bourse, the FBM KLCI succumbed to strong selling activities on Tuesday, possibly ahead of GE15 as it closed at just above the 1,450 level.
“Though we anticipate some bargain hunting activities, we reckon sentiment to remain cautious, hence expect the index to trend between 1,445 and 1,460 today,” he told Bernama.
He added that as Malaysia's corporate sector moves into the earnings season, buying activities may be seen in the banking and telecommunications counters as many foresee solid growth for these two sectors.
Meanwhile, Bursa Malaysia’s heavyweights Maybank and Public Bank decreased four sen each to RM8.46 and RM4.33, respectively, Petronas Chemicals declined five sen to RM8.57, CIMB lost seven to RM5.34 and IHH Healthcare gave up two sen to RM5.94.
Among the actives, Advance Synergy eased half-a-sen to 12 sen, Malaysia Steel Works (KL) gained 7.5 sen to 34 sen and Malaysian Resources inched up half-a-sen to 29 sen, while Icon Offshore and Iris Corporation were flat at 14.5 sen and 12.5 sen, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Shariah Index weakened 28.09 points to 10,415.88, the FBM Emas Index trimmed 42.48 points to 10,273.19, the FBM ACE shrank 27.97 points to 4,985.15 and the FBMT 100 Index gave up 46.60 points to 9,998.37, while the FBM 70 earned 2.10 points to 12,306.67.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index reduced by 98.57 points to 16,073.16, the Plantation Index slipped by 56.24 points to 6,875.22, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.28 of-a-point to 178.38, while the Energy Index improved by 4.57 points to 730.00. ― Bernama
