KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed lower on Friday as buying interest shifted from index heavyweights to smaller-cap technology and telecommunications stocks as well as real estate investment trusts (REITs). At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 15.94 points, or 0.98 per cent, to 1,607.76 from Thursday’s close of 1,623.70. The benchmark index, which opened 1.13 points higher at 1,624.83, moved between 1,602.98 and 1,626.34 throughout the session. On the broader market, gainers outnumbered decliners 597 to 470, while 518 counters were unchanged, 1,258 untraded and 33 suspended. Turnover rose 3.13 billion units worth RM3.27 billion from 3.06 billion units worth RM3.03 billion on Thursday.
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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