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Market Daily Report: Bursa Malaysia Ends Higher In Line With Most Regional Markets

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia ended higher on Friday in line with most Asian markets, mirroring gains from Wall Street, where investors welcomed the US Federal Reserve's substantial interest rate cut. The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose by 3.17 points, or 0.19 per cent, to 1,668.82 at the close from Thursday's close of 1,665.65. It opened 5.03 points higher at 1,670.68, trading between 1,668.48 and 1,674.04 throughout the session. In the broader market, gainers outpaced decliners 732 to 468, while 465 counters were unchanged, 850 untraded and 32 suspended. Turnover swelled to 4.19 billion units worth RM5.97 billion, from Thursday's 3.99 billion units worth RM4.08 billion. UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors head of investment research, Mohd Sedek Jantan, noted the FBM KLCI's gains were led by utilities, logistics, and banking stocks, reflecting improved market sentiment. Additiona
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US Consumer Confidence Rises in August Amid Growing Labor Market Concerns

US consumer confidence improved in August, as indicated by the Conference Board's consumer confidence index, which rose to 103.3 from an upwardly revised 101.9 in July. This increase exceeded economists' expectations, who had forecast little change from the previously reported 100.3. Despite the overall boost in confidence, Americans expressed increasing anxiety about the labor market.

Key Points:

  1. Rising Confidence but Labor Market Worries: While the consumer confidence index showed an improvement, there was a noticeable decline in consumers' perceptions of the labor market. The percentage of consumers who viewed jobs as "plentiful" decreased slightly to 32.8% from 33.4% in July, and those who found jobs "hard to get" rose to 16.4% from 16.3%.

  2. Federal Reserve's Response: In response to concerns over the labor market, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell recently signaled that interest rate cuts could be on the horizon. Financial markets are anticipating a 25-basis-point rate reduction in September, though a larger 50-basis-point cut remains a possibility. The Fed has kept its benchmark interest rate in the 5.25%-5.50% range for over a year after significant rate hikes in 2022 and 2023.

  3. Inflation Expectations: Consumers' 12-month inflation expectations decreased to 4.9%, the lowest level since March 2020. This suggests that while concerns about the labor market are growing, inflation expectations are becoming more anchored.

In summary, US consumer confidence saw a modest rise in August, reflecting overall optimism. However, underlying concerns about the labor market persist, prompting expectations of potential monetary easing by the Federal Reserve.

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