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 S&P 500 ended its two-day climb on Wednesday, closing lower after fluctuating throughout the session as investors evaluated the Federal Reserve's potential rate cuts and analyzed recent housing-market data . Meanwhile, the Nasdaq 100 rose modestly, supported by strong performance in tech stocks like Micron Technology Inc and Nvidia Corp . The 10-year US Treasury yield advanced to 3.79%, while the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained after a 0.5% drop the day before. Micron shares surged more than 10% in post-market trading after the company provided a robust revenue forecast, driven by demand for AI hardware . Fresh data revealed that US new home sales fell last month, though mortgage rates have dropped for eight consecutive weeks, sparking interest in home purchases. Skylar Olsen , chief economist at Zillow , noted that mortgage rates are unlikely to drop much further. Market Eyes Fed Moves and Post-Rate-Cut Catalysts Investors remain cautious following last wee...