KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia rebounded to close higher on Wednesday on selective buying of defensive stocks after a volatile trading session. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said consumer products and services stocks lifted the key index higher, overcoming lingering geopolitical concerns. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 3.08 points to 1,715.56 from yesterday’s close of 1,712.48. The benchmark index, which opened 1.91 points higher at 1,714.39, moved between 1,710.79 and 1,720.59 during the day’s trading. In the broader market, gainers outstripped decliners 550 to 476, while 612 counters were unchanged, 1,129 untraded, and 48 suspended. Turnover rose to 2.96 billion units valued at RM2.48 billion from 2.94 billion units valued at RM2.56 billion on Tuesday.
The Singapore stock market has posted gains for three consecutive sessions, advancing almost 80 points or 2.3% in that period. The Straits Times Index (STI) now sits just above the 3,530-point level and is expected to extend its gains again on Thursday.
The global forecast for Asian markets is positive, supported by optimism over the outlook for interest rates. While European markets showed mixed results, U.S. markets were up, suggesting that Asian markets are likely to follow the positive lead from the U.S.
On Wednesday, the STI finished modestly higher, buoyed by gains in financial shares, property stocks, and industrial issues. The index added 18.50 points or 0.52% to close at 3,531.17, after trading between 3,517.56 and 3,536.12.
Active Stocks and Movements
Among the actively traded stocks:
- CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust spiked 1.42%.
- CapitaLand Investment surged 2.15%.
- City Developments rose 0.19%.
- ComfortDelGro gained 0.68%.
- DBS Group collected 0.30%.
- Emperador rallied 1.16%.
- Hongkong Land improved 0.82%.
- Keppel DC REIT advanced 0.93%.
- Keppel Ltd increased 0.33%.
- Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust added 0.70%.
- Mapletree Industrial Trust was up 0.80%.
- Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation picked up 0.20%.
- SATS gathered 0.54%.
- Seatrium Limited rose 0.64%.
- SembCorp Industries climbed 1.00%.
- Singapore Technologies Engineering accelerated 1.35%.
- SingTel soared 1.54%.
- Venture Corporation fell 0.22%.
- Yangzijiang Shipbuilding tumbled 2.00%.
Several other stocks, including Thai Beverage, Wilmar International, Yangzijiang Financial, Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust, DFI Retail Group, Genting Singapore, and Mapletree Logistics Trust, remained unchanged.
Positive Lead from Wall Street
The Wall Street lead is favorable, with major U.S. indices shaking off early weakness to close near session highs:
- The Dow Jones climbed 124.75 points or 0.31% to finish at 40,861.71.
- The NASDAQ surged 369.65 points or 2.17% to end at 17,395.53.
- The S&P 500 rallied 58.61 points or 1.07% to close at 5,554.13.
The early sell-off on Wall Street was triggered by the Labor Department’s consumer price inflation report for August, which showed consumer prices increased in line with estimates, but core consumer prices rose slightly more than expected. Despite this, the initial selling pressure eased significantly as the Federal Reserve is still expected to continue lowering rates in the coming months.
Crude Oil Prices Surge
Crude oil prices surged higher on Wednesday, recovering from a three-year low in the previous session due to concerns over prolonged production shutdowns in the offshore oil patch caused by Hurricane Francine. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October ended up $1.56 or 2.37% at $67.31 a barrel.
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