KUALA LUMPUR, March 10 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia rebounded to end higher today with the benchmark FBM KLCI reclaiming the 1,700 psychological level, supported by improved global sentiment after US President Donald Trump signalled a potential de-escalation of the Iran conflict, alongside Malaysia’s stronger Industrial Production Index (IPI) data. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) increased 27.51 points, or 1.64 per cent, to 1,701.68 from yesterday’s close of 1,674.17. The benchmark index opened 10.68 points higher at 1,684.85, its lowest point today, and hit a high of 1,703.61 in the late afternoon session. Market breadth was positive, with gainers thumping losers 929 to 382. A total of 361 counters were unchanged, 982 untraded and 19 suspended. Turnover declined to 3.60 billion units worth RM3.75 billion from yesterday’s 5.52 billion units worth RM5.87 billion.
KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 29): The FBM KLCI rose for the third consecutive day today, rising 0.47% or 7.63 points to close at 1,637.93.
The broader market, however, was mixed with trading remaining subdued as most investors were staying away during this year-end holiday season.
Mercury Securities Sdn Bhd research head Edmund Tham said the local stock market is still performing below expectations.
"The sentiment is not that great as we speak and the market today is still not very sound," he said when contacted over the phone. "Trade volumes have yet to fully recover and we might only see some recovery once traders are back from the year-end break."
"However, the ringgit is stabilising, with oil prices hovering between US$53 (RM237.68) and US$54 per barrel. For starters, this is an advantage to us as we are an oil-exporting country," he added.
Going forward, he said investors are expected to pay close attention to the construction industry, especially sector players bidding for infrastructure jobs from the government.
There were 370 gainers and 371 losers on Bursa Malaysia today. A total of 1.77 billion shares valued at RM1.4 billion were traded.
The top three active counters were Sumatec Resources Bhd, Borneo Oil Bhd and Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd.
Reuters today reported that shares across Asian markets were subdued in view of the mild setback faced by Wall Street following weeks of gains, while a pullback in US yields stimulated year-end profit-taking in the US dollar.
Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 1.32%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.17%, and South Korea's Kospi nudged 0.1% higher.
Source: The Edge
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