KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 ― Bursa Malaysia opened slightly higher today, recovering from intermittent profit-taking the previous day, as strong market sentiment persisted, an analyst said.

At 9.05am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 3.16 points to 1,621.43 from yesterday's close of 1,618.27.

The benchmark index opened 2.38 points higher at 1,620.65.

On the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 234 to 203, with 299 counters unchanged, 1,688 untraded, and 67 suspended.

Turnover was 229.10 million shares worth RM126.64 million.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said despite Wall Street being closed for Memorial Day yesterday, he observed that a glance at the futures market indicates positive trends across all three major indices at the moment.

“Nevertheless, attention will be focused on the US personal consumption expenditure data scheduled for release this Friday,” he told Bernama.

Domestically, Thong anticipates an uptick in stock accumulation, particularly in the banking sector, as most institutions have reported commendable earnings for the first quarter of 2024.

“Hence, we anticipate the index to fluctuate within the 1,620-1,630 range today,” he said.

Among the heavyweight counters, Public Bank and CIMB added one sen each to RM4.14 and RM6.91, respectively, while Maybank, Tenaga Nasional and IHH Healthcare were flat each at RM9.99, RM13.22 and RM6.29 respectively.

Among the active stocks, Smart Asia Chemical climbed 8.5 sen to 48.5 sen, GHL Systems rose six sen to RM1.07, PDZ Holdings and Avillion each gained one sen, reaching five sen and 7.5 sen, respectively, while JCY International slid one sen to 50.5 sen.

On the index front, the FBM Emas Index rose by 17.66 points to 12,364.78, the FBMT 100 Index increased by 16.52 points to 11,960.81, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index saw a gain of 12.62 points, reaching 12,638.64.

However, the FBM ACE Index decreased by 0.76 of-a-point, settling at 5,549.16, and the FBM 70 Index experienced a slight decline of 2.93 points to 17,800.81.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index rose by 23.94 points to 17,682.29, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up by 0.32 of a point to 196.81, the Plantation Index strengthened by 19.34 points to 7,277.42, while the Energy Index saw a minor dip of 0.70 points, reaching 998.71. ― Bernama