KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia rebounded to close higher on Wednesday on selective buying of defensive stocks after a volatile trading session. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said consumer products and services stocks lifted the key index higher, overcoming lingering geopolitical concerns. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 3.08 points to 1,715.56 from yesterday’s close of 1,712.48. The benchmark index, which opened 1.91 points higher at 1,714.39, moved between 1,710.79 and 1,720.59 during the day’s trading. In the broader market, gainers outstripped decliners 550 to 476, while 612 counters were unchanged, 1,129 untraded, and 48 suspended. Turnover rose to 2.96 billion units valued at RM2.48 billion from 2.94 billion units valued at RM2.56 billion on Tuesday.
A stronger than expected October jobs report boost the chances of a December rate hike and Wall Street dropped slightly lower on Friday to reflect that.
Out of the 10 major sectors in S&P, nine were lower, with the interest rate sensitive utilities sector's 3% decline being the worst while the financial sectors was only up by 1% and the only gainer.
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| S&P 500 Index dropped slightly on Friday |
The Labor Department's report showed nonfarm payrolls increased by 271,000 in October, beating the 180,000 expected. Data for August and September were revised to show 12,000 more jobs on average were created than previously reported.
The unemployment rate fell to 5.0%, the lowest since April 2008, from 5.1% in September. The jobless rate is now at a level many Fed officials view as consistent with full employment.
"I think it's good news — it's good news for the economy, eventually the market will take it as good news," said Sean Lynch, co-head of global equity strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute in Omaha, Nebraska.
"It's a blowout number, it's a strong number for the jobs and the consumer should be feeling pretty good heading into the last couple of the months of the year."
The dollar rose to a 6½-month high after the data.
Higher rates increase borrowing costs for companies, while a rise in the dollar hurts their income from overseas markets.
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