KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed almost flat on Tuesday as buying interest rotated away from index heavyweights towards smaller-cap construction stocks, with sentiment affected by geopolitical uncertainty, said an analyst. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.39 of a point to 1,714.40 from Monday’s close of 1,714.79. The benchmark index opened 1.65 points lower at 1,713.14 and moved between 1,710.44 and 1,714.50 throughout the trading session. The broader market was almost evenly balanced, with decliners leading gainers 548 to 546, while 598 counters were unchanged, 1,107 were untraded and 25 were suspended. Turnover expanded to 4.13 billion units valued at RM3.14 billion from 3.60 billion units valued at RM2.45 billion on Monday.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is set to vote next week on some of the most significant changes to stock-market regulations in nearly 20 years. The revisions aim to alter how trades are priced and processed, affecting brokers, market makers, and exchange businesses.
Key Proposals on the Agenda
The SEC’s commissioners will meet on Wednesday to decide whether to finalize measures that would:
Change How Stock Exchanges Negotiate Rebates: These changes would impact how stock exchanges offer rebates to brokers to attract more trading volume to their platforms.
Tweak Minimum Pricing Increments for Stock Trades: The proposal will adjust the minimum increments by which stocks can be priced, potentially affecting trading strategies and market dynamics.
These revisions are part of a broader package of reforms the SEC unveiled in December 2022, aimed at creating a fairer and more transparent market. The initiative was largely in response to the meme-stock trading frenzy that exposed weaknesses in the current market structure.
Previous Measures and Ongoing Debates
A related disclosure proposal was finalized in March, requiring retail brokerages to release data similar to that of exchanges, wholesale firms, and alternative trading systems.
However, the most contentious part of the proposed revamp is not on the agenda for Wednesday’s vote. This proposal would mandate that market-making firms and major stock exchanges participate in auctions to win the right to process equity orders within milliseconds. The auction proposal has drawn criticism from prominent market makers like Virtu Financial Inc and Citadel Securities, which handle a large volume of brokers' trade orders.
The outcome of the SEC's vote could mark a significant shift in the structure and operation of US stock markets, with potential implications for all participants in the trading ecosystem.
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