KUALA LUMPUR, March 30 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia’s benchmark index closed lower today, in line with most regional markets, as investors adjusted their risk exposure amid spiralling oil prices driven by the ongoing West Asia conflict, now in its second month. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) retreated by 24.75 points or 1.44 per cent to 1,687.90 from Friday’s close of 1,712.65. The market bellwether opened 10.57 points weaker at 1,702.08 and fluctuated between 1,682.79 and 1,702.38. The broader market was bearish, with decliners thumping advancers 956 to 371. A total of 373 counters were unchanged, 1,042 untraded and 134 suspended. Turnover expanded to 3.98 billion units worth RM4.85 billion from last Friday’s 2.97 billion units worth RM3.25 billion.
KUALA LUMPUR (July 26): The FBM KLCI closed 2.66 points or 0.2% higher on bargain hunting amid speculation on the timing of Malaysia's 14th General Election (GE).
At 5pm, the KLCI settled at 1,766 points. The KLCI traded between its intraday high and low at 1,766.7 and 1,760.82 points respectively.
Bursa Malaysia saw 1.3 billion shares worth RM1.55 billion traded. There were 373 gainers and 378 decliners.
Etiqa Insurance and Takaful head of research Chris Eng told theedgemarkets.com that the KLCI rose as investors pushed the index higher "possibly on insider information on when the election might be (held)".
“The (Malaysian stock market) rally will continue as long as the global market does not collapse. Currently, the market is still foreign news driven,” Eng said.
Malaysia held its GE13 on May 5, 2013.
Across Asian share markets today, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.48% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.33%. South Korea’s Kospi, however, fell 0.22%.
Reuters reported that Japanese stocks rose on Wednesday, snapping a three-day losing streak, as solid gains on Wall Street boosted sentiment and Caterpillar Inc's strong earnings whetted investors' appetite for companies such as Komatsu Ltd and Hitachi Construction Machinery Co.
While overall sentiment improved, investors took profits later in some of the stocks which had risen in early trade, as they remained cautious ahead of a US Federal Reserve monetary policy decision later in the day, Reuters reported.
Source: The Edge

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