MONEY MASTER

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 30): The FBM KLCI slipped to below the key support level of 1,500 today, in line with weaker regional markets which were dragged down by Covid-19 worries. The benchmark index ended 18.33 points or 1.21% lower at its intra-day low of 1,494.6. Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong said the market weakness was in tandem with regional peers. “Local political uncertainty also dampened sentiment as foreign funds have been selling local equities in the past five days,” he told theedgemarkets.com . Leong expects the weakness to continue next week in the absence of fresh catalysts. Overall market breadth was negative with 665 counters ending the day in the red, versus 300 gainers and 407 that were unchanged. A total of 4.12 billion securities were traded at a value of RM2.72 billion, compared with 4.48 billion securities worth RM2.86 billion yesterday. Heavyweights that dragged the KLCI down included Sime Darby Plantation Bhd (d...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 29): The FBM KLCI erased earlier gains and sank into the red today on concerns about the latest political developments in the country. The benchmark index closed 2.46 points or 0.16% lower at 1,512.93 after moving between 1,511.51 and 1,520.04 throughout the day. Areca Capital Sdn Bhd chief executive officer (CEO) Danny Wong said the market pulled back in the afternoon after Yang di-Pertuan Agong issued a statement rebuking the government. “The market in the next few days should remain volatile as political uncertainties will continue to affect market sentiment,” he told The Edge. The King, in his statement, said he was very disappointed that the Cabinet had decided to revoke the Emergency Ordinances promulgated during the state of emergency without receiving his consent. Meanwhile, Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) Research analyst Ng Jun Sheng said in a note today that lingering concerns over the precarious local Covid-19 situation and...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 28): Political headwinds and persistent rise in the number of Covid-19 infections continue to bog down the stock market. The FBM KLCI closed almost flat amidst cautious sentiments as it ended 0.79 points or 0.05% lower at 1,515.39, after trading at between 1,509.81 and 1,516.35. Rakuten Trade Research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said Malaysian equity market sentiments continued to be affected by domestic political uncertainty and high Covid-19 cases. “People are just afraid it will drag too long and lead to a more difficult economic recovery,” he told theedgemarkets.com , adding that he expects the benchmark index to be range bound in the near term. Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 cases jumped to an all-time high of 17,405 today, compared with 16,117 yesterday. The previous record high of new cases was 17,045 posted on Sunday (July 25). Meanwhile, TA Securities said in a note today that blue chips closed slightly higher yesterday, despite heavy losses i...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 27): The FBM KLCI rebounded today after yesterday’s dip, bucking the trend seen among its regional peers, amid China’s crackdown on certain sectors and the cautiousness ahead of the upcoming US Federal Open Market Committee meeting. At its close, the benchmark index was up 2.07 points or 0.14% at 1,514.60, a slight rebound after two straight days of decline. The index remained in positive territory throughout the day, possibly due to a slightly more optimistic sentiment, as Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday said that most states will move into Phase 4 of the National Recovery Plan as early as October. The gainers among the KLCI constituents were led by MISC Bhd, which rose 2.3% to close at RM6.83, IOI Corp Bhd (up 1.6%) and PPB Group Bhd (up 1.1%). However, market breadth remained negative, as 657 decliners outnumbered 326 gainers. The top percentage gainers were Vsolar Group Bhd and Artroniq Bhd, while the decliners were led by B.I....

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 23): The FBM KLCI closed lower today as investors stayed cautious amid rising number of Covid-19 cases. The benchmark index ended 4.18 points or 0.27% lower at 1,523.44, after trading between 1,523.16 and 1,529.65. Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 infections hit a new high of 15,573 today, bringing the nation's cumulative total to 980,491 cases. Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd head of research Loui Low said the continued rise in the number of Covid-19 cases is not a good sign for the market, adding that he expects the negative sentiment to persist. However, Low is slightly positive on the market movement next week due to the reconvening of Parliament. “The reopening of Parliament could be a positive sign as some issues may be discussed during the meeting,” he told The Edge . Overall, market breadth was mixed, with 559 counters ending the day in the green, versus 443 losers and 432 that were unchanged. A total of 5.42 billion securities were traded at a value of RM3....

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 22): The FBM KLCI closed higher today, tracking regional bourses, which were mostly higher, as market sentiment was spurred by the overnight gain on Wall Street that was driven by strong quarter earnings figures so far. The benchmark index increased 0.73% or 11.1 points to close at the intraday high of 1,527.62. Elsewhere, Singapore’s Strait Times Index gained 1.28% to 3,159.08; Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index shot up 1.83% to 27,723.84, Seoul's Kospi index climbed 1.07% to 3,250.21; Tokyo's Nikkei 225 went up 0.58% to 27,548; the Shanghai Composite index rise 0.34% to 3,574.73.  Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong said the KLCI movement today is tracking gains on Wall Street last night, and is in line with regional gains. “The gains today were driven by mild bargain-hunting activities. Investors are focusing on the economic recovery,” he told The Edge . However, he expects the market to be range bound tomorrow, as the market...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 21): The FBM KLCI closed lower today as market sentiment continued to be affected by the high number of Covid-19 cases. The benchmark index finished 3.45 points or 0.23% lower at 1,516.52 after moving between 1,515.34 and 1,521.57. Rakuten Trade Research vice president Thong Pak Leng said the market ended lower after a volatile session, mainly dragged down by banking, plantation and telco stocks. He noted however that glove counters rose further amid the rising number of Covid-19 cases worldwide, including that of the fast-spreading Delta variant. “Overall, the performance of FBM KLCI, which had been stuck in a consolidation mode since the past two weeks, is expected to trend within a tight range in the absence of positive catalysts going forward,” Thong told The Edge . Hong Leong Investment Bank Research analyst Ng Jun Sheng said in a note today that the KLCI may trend sideways but with an upward bias towards 1,534-1,545-1,556 level (support at...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 16): The FBM KLCI ended flat on Friday, as daily new Covid-19 cases in the country retreated from an all-time high the day before. At 5pm, the benchmark index reversed the day’s losses to close slightly higher by 1.66 points or 0.11% to 1,522.48, led by gains at Genting Bhd and Digi.Com Bhd while glovemakers' shares fell. For the week, the KLCI did not move much against last week’s closing at 1,520.58.  Malaysia today recorded 12,541 new Covid-19 cases, from 13,215 on Thursday, while daily vaccination numbers reached another new high of 460,158 on July 15. “Market volatility for this week has reduced much from a week ago, indicating that the sentiment is not as panicked as the previous week,” said HLIB Research analyst Ng Jun Sheng. This week saw a technical rebound after several weeks of downtrend, Ng said, as investors also have more clarity such as through clearer Covid-19 data, as well as the confirmation of Parliament sitting dates. Inv...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 16): The FBM KLCI ended flat on Friday, as daily new Covid-19 cases in the country retreated from an all-time high the day before. At 5pm, the benchmark index reversed the day’s losses to close slightly higher by 1.66 points or 0.11% to 1,522.48, led by gains at Genting Bhd and Digi.Com Bhd while glovemakers' shares fell. For the week, the KLCI did not move much against last week’s closing at 1,520.58.  Malaysia today recorded 12,541 new Covid-19 cases, from 13,215 on Thursday, while daily vaccination numbers reached another new high of 460,158 on July 15. “Market volatility for this week has reduced much from a week ago, indicating that the sentiment is not as panicked as the previous week,” said HLIB Research analyst Ng Jun Sheng. This week saw a technical rebound after several weeks of downtrend, Ng said, as investors also have more clarity such as through clearer Covid-19 data, as well as the confirmation of Parliament sitting dates. I...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): The FBM KLCI gained 8.5 points, or 0.56%, to close at 1,520.82 today. Leading the charge in terms of the index’s constituents were Top Glove Corp Bhd, Hartalega Holdings Bhd and Mr DIY Group (M) Bhd. Conversely, the top decliners among the component stocks are Sime Darby Plantation Bhd, Petronas Dagangan Bhd and MISC Bhd. On the broader market, market breadth was positive with 611 counters posting gains, versus the 348 counters that posted declines and 500 counters that went unchanged. The top actives today were Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd, Careplus Group Bhd and LKL International Bhd. The trading day’s top value gainers were Hartalega Holdings Bhd, KESM Industries Bhd and Adventa Bhd. The top losers were Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd, Kumpulan H&L High-Tech Bhd and Widetech (M) Bhd. Elsewhere in the region, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was 0.75% or 208.81 points higher at 29,996.27. The Shanghai Composite climbed 1.02% or 36.09 points to 3,6...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 14): The FBM KLCI dropped 7.24 points or 0.48% today in line with the performance of Asian equities as investors fret over an inflation spike in the US market. On top of that, the concern about the resurgence in new Covid-19 cases in the region has kept investors largely at the sideline. Malaysia’s benchmark index closed at 1,512.32 today, drifting to near this year’s low of 1,508.71 recorded on July 8.  Overnight, the US reported that its consumer price index jumped 0.9% in June and 5.4% from the same month last year, topping all forecasts and showing higher costs associated with the American economy’s reopening continue to fuel inflationary pressures. Reuters reported that Asian shares fell on Wednesday after data showing the biggest jump in US inflation in 13 years fuelled expectations that the Federal Reserve could exit pandemic-era stimulus earlier than previously thought. In Asia markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 gave up 0.2%, while Seoul's K...

 KUALA LUMPUR (July 13): The FBM KLCI closed 0.44% higher, thanks to late buying support in selected index-linked stocks, particularly glove, telco and plantation counters. At 5pm, the FBM KLCI was up 6.67 points at 1,519.56 points, after hovering between 1,513.54 points and 1,520.03 points.  Hartalega Holdings Bhd, Top Glove Corp Bhd, Axiata Group Bhd, Telekom Malaysia Bhd, Digi.com Bhd, Maxis Bhd, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd were among the heavyweights that advanced today.    Rakuten Trade Research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the Malaysian stock market ended mostly higher, after a day of volatile trading, as new Covid-19 cases surpassed the 11,000-mark. “Overall, the FBM KLCI – which had been stuck in consolidation mode since end-June – is expected to trend within a tight range in the absence of positive catalysts, going forward,” he added.  Nonetheless, Thong still believes this is a good opportunity for bargain hunting, especially for stron...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 12): The FBM KLCI bucked the regional trend to close lower today as investor sentiment was dented by political uncertainty and the likelihood of the Government lowering its 2021 economic growth projection. The FBM KLCI closed down 7.69 points or 0.51% at 1,512.89 after lingering in the negative territory for most of the day's session. Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong said the heated domestic political landscape has led to some investors pulling out from the market. The expected cut in the country’s economic growth projection also further weighed on market sentiment, he told theedgemarkets.com Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz has said that the growth forecast for the year could be cut to about 4% from the current 6% to 7.5%. Across Bursa Malaysia, 4.28 billion shares worth RM2.28 billion were traded. Losers led gainers by 742 to 246, while 395 counters closed unchanged. Index-linked Top Glove Corp Bhd and Hartalega...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 9): The FBM KLCI finished 0.79% or 11.87 points higher at 1,520.58 points today, snapping a four-day losing streak, as bargain hunting emerges. MIDF research head Imran Yassin Md Yusof said investors were looking for equities that are deemed to have more attractive valuations now, following the significant sell-off yesterday as concerns over domestic political developments and the lower Dow Jones weighed on sentiment. “In addition, the political concerns that affected the market appear to have cooled off for the time being,” Imran said, adding political developments that impact the market tend to be short-term in nature as investors ultimately will look at valuations as well earnings in the long run. Most of the index’s constituents posted gains, with 22 counters rising — led by Top Glove Corp Bhd, Digi.Com Bhd and Telekom Malaysia Bhd. Six declined — led by Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd and Dialog Group Bhd. Two constituents —...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 8): The FBM KLCI closed 1.4% or 21.44 points lower today at 1,508.71, marking a one-year low for the headline index. Out of the 30 counters on the index, 28 posted declines while only one counter posted gains, whereas one closed unchanged. Leading the decliners among the FBM KLCI’s constituents were Mr DIY Group (M) Bhd, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd and Telekom Malaysia Bhd. Meanwhile, the lone gainer was Petronas Gas Bhd, and Digi.Com Bhd was unchanged. According to Malacca Securities head of research Loui Low, the decline in investor sentiment was due to a confluence of factors. For one, the higher number of Covid-19 cases has dampened the outlook on the reopening of the economy in the second phase of the National Recovery Plan. Meanwhile, recent political events and the lower Dow Jones futures have also weighed on sentiment as well. “As such, all these factors have been priced into today’s decline,” he said. Over the past year, the FBM KLCI has declin...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 7): The FMB KLCI slipped 0.1% or 1.48 points, tracking regional market declines as market sentiment continues to be weighed by high Covid-19 cases, besides domestic political issues. The benchmark index settled at 1,530.15 points on market close. This is the third consecutive day the benchmark index has closed in the red following the start of the Enhanced Movement Control Order or EMCO on July 3 in many parts of Selangor and certain localities in Kuala Lumpur — where new infections remain high —  to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. The index has retreated 0.26% or 4.08 points in the last three days. Investors are also watching carefully what Bank Negara Malaysia's next move will be as its monetary policy committee meets tomorrow (July 8), amid the current economic climate, according to Areca Capital chief executive officer Danny Wong. “There are no strong catalysts right now for the market to move either way,” he added. The benchmark index saw...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 6): The FBM KLCI finished near the flatline for the second day running today as investor sentiment continued to be affected by a high number of new Covid-19 cases. The benchmark index closed 0.73 point or 0.05% lower at 1,531.63. The index component stocks that saw the biggest declines were Digi.Com Bhd, Sime Darby Plantation Bhd and Maxis Bhd. On the broader market, gainers led losers by 579 versus 417, while 427 counters closed unchanged. Rakuten Trade head of equity sales Vincent Lau said that while the wider market was mixed to steadier,  the KLCI was impacted by the latest rise in new Covid-19 cases. TA Securities Research, on the other hand, said lingering worries over rising infections and domestic political turmoil would continue to cloud local sentiment. “On the index, immediate support remains at 1,520, with the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement (FR) of the 1,207 low to 1,695 peak at 1,509 as key retracement support, followe...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 5): The FBM KLCI ended the day on a flat note as investors remained on the sidelines on lack of catalysts. The index closed 0.99 points or 0.06% lower at 1,532.36, after moving between 1,525.4 and 1,535.88.   Rakuten Trade vice president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the lacklustre trading seen today was due to the absence of buying catalyst. “The FBM KLCI rebounded in the last minutes of trading with buying on banking and telco counters. Overall, the benchmark index ended flattish, dragged down mainly by plantation, oil and gas and glove counters,” he said. Thong said the high number of Covid-19 cases and the enhanced movement control order (EMCO) in many areas in KL and Selangor has dampened investor sentiment. Nonetheless, Thong believes the market is oversold and the downside risk remains low. “We reckon this is a good opportunity for bottom fishing, especially in blue chip stocks whose valuations are currently hovering at attract...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 2): The FBM KLCI lost ground and fell into the red today as the implementation of a two-week Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO) over most parts of Selangor and 15 localities in Kuala Lumpur soured market sentiment. The FBM KLCI opened lower at 1,533.7 today. Selling pressure heightened at noon session sent the benchmark index to 1,529.68 — the lowest in almost eight months since Nov 9. At closing, the benchmark index pared some losses and closed at 1,533.35, still down 0.06% or 0.88 points compared to yesterday’s closing of 1,534.23. TA Securities Holdings Bhd senior technical analyst Stephen Soo told theedgemarkets.com the sentiment was weak due to yesterday's announcement of the EMCO that covered most areas in Klang Valley. He noted that the KLCI's resistance levels are at 1,552 and 1,580, while its support levels are at 1,452 and 1,480. Today, Bursa Malaysia saw 5.51 billion shares worth RM2.88 billion traded. There were 406 gainers and ...

  KUALA LUMPUR (July 1): Bargain hunting lifted the FBM KLCI higher on the first trading day of the second half of this year, with market sentiment also boosted by higher crude oil prices. However, the benchmark index closed off the day’s high at 1,534.23 — up 0.1% or 1.6 points from yesterday — due to profit-taking, especially in glove counters Hartalega Holdings Bhd and Top Glove Corp Bhd. On the broader market, gainers triumphed over losers by 554 to 374, while 422 counters finished unchanged.  Trading volume stood at 7.18 billion shares, 54% higher than yesterday’s 4.65 billion shares. Trading value jumped 31% to RM3.49 billion from RM2.67 billion. Rakuten Trade head of equity sales Vincent Lau said the KLCI edged higher mainly due to mild bargain hunting following yesterday's steep losses.   Oil prices rose today, supported by lower US inventories and the prospect of strengthening demand, while investors awaited a decision from OPEC+ producers on whet...