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 Trump administration is preparing a sweeping tariff package that may mark the most aggressive protectionist turn in US history since the 1930s. Markets are watching closely as risks of recession, inflation, and global retaliation mount. Policy Overview President Trump is poised to unveil a new round of “reciprocal tariffs” , possibly as soon as Wednesday, which would target countries with trade barriers or tax structures deemed unfair to US exporters. Tariffs could raise average US import duties by up to 28 percentage points — the most since the 1800s. The plan would replace the US’s long-held multilateral trade commitments under GATT/WTO with bilateral arrangements . Key trading partners including Europe, China, Canada, and Southeast Asia are expected to be affected. Economic Impact Forecasts Bloomberg Economics projects a 4% hit to US GDP over 2–3 years under a maximalist scenario— more than $1 trillion in output ...