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.
US weekly jobless claims rose marginally last week, with initial claims for state unemployment benefits increasing by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 225,000 for the week ending Sept 28, according to the Labor Department. Economists had forecast 220,000 claims for the week.
Despite the moderate increase, claims remain consistent with a stable labor market, characterized by low layoffs. However, this stability is expected to be temporarily disrupted by external factors such as Hurricane Helene, which caused significant damage across six US states, and ongoing strikes at Boeing and US ports.
While striking workers are ineligible for unemployment benefits, their actions could lead to temporary layoffs throughout the supply chain. Boeing has already announced temporary furloughs affecting thousands of workers, further complicating the labor market outlook.
The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, known as continuing claims, fell by 1,000 to 1.826 million for the week ending Sept 21. The labor market slowdown has been largely driven by cooler hiring following rate hikes from the Federal Reserve to combat inflation.
The claims data does not impact the upcoming September employment report, with nonfarm payrolls expected to have increased by 140,000. The unemployment rate is forecast to remain unchanged at 4.2%.
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