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.
Airline shares across Asia tumbled after US and Israeli strikes on Iran disrupted Middle East airspace and triggered a sharp spike in oil prices. Carriers including Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd , Qantas Airways Ltd , Singapore Airlines Ltd and Japan Airlines Co Ltd fell more than 5% in early trading. Oil prices surged about 7%, compounding pressure on the sector. What’s Happening Key developments: Key hubs including Dubai and Doha closed for a third day Thousands of flights disrupted Tanker damage reported in the Middle East Brent crude climbed to multi-month highs According to VariFlight data, mainland Chinese airlines cancelled 26.5% of flights to and from the Middle East for March 2–8. Share Price Reaction Qantas fell as much as 10.4% at open ANA Holdings Inc dropped over 4% Air China Ltd , China Southern Airlines Co Ltd and China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd each slid at least 4% AirAsia X Bhd also declined Even carriers n...