Market Daily Report: Bursa Malaysia bucks regional trend to end slightly lower, CI stays above 1,600

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia struggled to maintain its positive momentum for most of the day and closed slightly lower today on late selling, despite the upbeat regional market performance.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 1.12 points or 0.07 per cent to 1,602.08 from yesterday’s close of 1,603.20.

The index opened 1.37 points lower at 1,601.83 and moved between 1,597.12 and 1,605.95 throughout the day.

Market breadth was negative as decliners trounced advancers 548 to 466, while 541 counters were unchanged, 923 untraded and 39 suspended.

Turnover rose to 3.32 billion units valued at RM2.53 billion versus 2.59 billion units valued at RM2.46 billion yesterday.

UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors' head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said the FBM KLCI's minor movement suggests that investors may be repositioning their portfolios or refraining from significant trades, given the absence of clear market catalysts.

"The prevailing neutral or cautious sentiment is likely influenced by broader uncertainties," he told Bernama.

He said yesterday’s US inflation data hinted at the possibility of the US Federal Reserve (Fed) cutting interest rates in its meeting next week.

"However, investors appear more inclined to wait for confirmation after the Fed’s announcement rather than engage in speculative activity.

"This contrasts sharply with North Asia and Greater China, where composite indices traded higher, supported by improved sentiment surrounding US-China relations," he added.

The November US CPI stood at 2.7 per cent, up from 2.6 per cent in the previous month. The Core CPI held steady at 3.3 per cent for three consecutive months, from 3.2 per cent in August, indicating that the inflation rate remained persistent.

Mohd Sedek said market activity on Bursa Malaysia showed some improvement compared to yesterday, with a total of 3.32 billion shares traded, suggesting slightly better investor participation despite the subdued sentiment.

Meanwhile, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said Malaysian equities closed mixed despite positive performances across regional markets, primarily impacted by foreign selling.

"Key regional indices ended higher, bolstered by US inflation data that strengthened expectations of a Fed rate cut next week.

"Investors are also anticipating updates on potential stimulus measures from China’s Central Economic Work Conference (CEWC), which concludes today," he said.

Thong expects the FBM KLCI to remain in consolidation mode with a slight upward bias in the near term, likely moving within the 1,600-1,610 range heading into the weekend.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank and CIMB perked up 2.0 sen each to RM10.14 and RM8.13, IHH Healthcare added 1.0 sen to RM7.17, Public Bank eased 4.0 sen to RM4.57, and Tenaga Nasional slid 20 sen to RM13.56.

Of the active stocks, Zen Tech inched down half-a-sen to half-a-sen, TMK Chemical rose 17 sen to RM1.92, KPJ Healthcare gained 7.0 sen to RM2.34, while TWL Holdings and Aizo were flat at 3.0 sen and 13 sen respectively.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slid 10.93 points to 12,286.55, the FBMT 100 Index decreased 11.27 points to 11,968.04, the FBM 70 Index dropped 27.96 points to 18,395.05, the FBM Emas Shariah Index lost 1.60 points to 12,267.64, but the FBM ACE Index rose by 15.58 points to 5,308.83.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index trimmed 50.54 points to 19,102.12, the Plantation Index expanded 13.11 points to 7,654.30, the Energy Index inched up 1.86 points to 824.15, and the Industrial Products and Services Index put on 0.69 of-a-point to 174.69.

The Main Market volume improved to 1.76 billion units worth RM2.25 billion against Wednesday's 1.51 billion units worth RM2.25 billion.

Warrants turnover surged to 1.05 billion units valued at RM151.25 million from 737.61 million units valued at RM92.05 million previously.

The ACE Market volume expanded to 503.11 million units worth RM122.60 million compared with 341.79 million units worth RM114.04 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 242.18 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (357.84 million), construction (92.57 million), technology (267.21 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (68.25 million), property (292.99 million), plantation (33.90 million), REITs (14.06 million), closed/fund (5,300), energy (124.94 million), healthcare (128.34 million), telecommunications and media (46.15 million), transportation and logistics (51.65 million), utilities (34.52 million), and business trusts (757,600).