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.
Hedge funds turned bullish on the yen just before dovish comments by Japan’s new prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba , and a robust US jobs report caused the yen’s worst weekly drop since late 2009 . Data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed that speculative investors flipped to a net long position on the yen for the first time since mid-August. Expectations for a more hawkish stance by the new prime minister were upended when Ishiba said Japan wasn't ready for further rate hikes . Additionally, stronger-than-expected US nonfarm payrolls data bolstered demand for the US dollar , leading the market to price out another major Federal Reserve rate cut . As a result, Japan's currency plunged 4.4% against the dollar last week, marking its worst loss since 2009 . With the dollar-yen exchange rate heading toward 150 per dollar , some investors have begun re-loading short yen bets in risky carry trades, reflecting continued bearish sentiment. Hedge funds were the...