KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 7 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia’s benchmark index rebounded from earlier losses to close at its intraday high on Wednesday, gaining 0.27 per cent in late trading as buying interest returned to selected heavyweights. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) advanced 4.48 points to 1,676.83 from Tuesday’s close of 1,672.35. The benchmark index opened 0.88 of-a-point lower at 1,671.47 and subsequently hit a low of 1,665.94 during the mid-morning session before gaining momentum toward closing. On the broader market, losers led gainers by 565 to 512, while some 526 counters were unchanged, 1,046 untraded, and 10 suspended. Turnover improved to 2.73 billion units worth RM2.76 billion versus Tuesday’s 2.66 billion units worth RM2.76 billion. Dealers said that investors were cautious following geopolitical developments in Asia.
KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 24): The FBM KLCI closed down 41.14 points or 2.69% at 1,490.06 today, after a sea of red washed over Malaysian stocks amid an unusual confluence of factors including the Covid-19 global outbreak, lower crude oil prices and Malaysia’s political uncertainty.
A local fund manager, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told theedgemarkets.com that the Malaysian stock market has entered into a bear market as investors adopted a "sell-first, think-later" approach, while waiting for political clarity.
The local fund manager said: “If you look at the grand scheme of things, the Malaysian market is certainly bearish at this point, based on the accepted ratio where stocks see a 20% decline from its recent peak.
“It may rebound but everything will depend on the political temperature, which appears to be very fluid at this point, as more events unfold. If there are no developments to the political impasse, markets could fall further. The immediate support level would be 1,480.”
Investors are closely watching Malaysia's political landscape after unexpected talks yesterday (Sunday, Feb 23) between Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia and opposition parties to form a new government, which would exclude PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Today, news reports quoting the Prime Minister's Office's statement said Dr Mahathir had submitted his resignation letter as prime minister to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong at 1pm.
Across Bursa today, decliners outstripped gainers by 1,015 to 137 respectively. Trading volume swelled to 4.03 billion shares worth RM3.91 billion today, versus 2.73 billion shares worth RM2.14 billion on Friday (Feb 21).
Top decliners included KLCI stocks Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Public Bank Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Bhd, after broad-based selling across Bursa.
All Bursa indices ended lower. The construction and energy indices were dealt the largest blow, after they fell 6.07% and 4.06% respectively, as the Covid-19 global outbreak and lower crude oil prices hit world market sentiment.
Reuters reported global shares and oil slid on Monday, while safe-haven gold surged as the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus (Covid-19) outside China, darkened the outlook for world growth, with infections and deaths rising in South Korea, Italy and the Middle East.
The large spike in Italian cases has especially rattled investors on concerns about the potential for the virus to spread deeper into Europe, and cause economic disruption there.
The selloff in Asian markets and US and European stock futures on Monday was financial markets' first reaction to the weekend news, which analysts described as game-changing developments in the outbreak.
Source: The Edge
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