KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 19 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia gave up earlier gains to end mixed today, amid a higher regional market showing, as property, construction, and healthcare counters attracted buying interests, while plantation, banking, and telecommunication stocks saw some profit-taking, an analyst said. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 1.70 points to close at 1,602.34 from yesterday’s close of 1,604.04. The benchmark index, which opened 0.86 of-a-point lower at 1,603.18, moved between 1,601.02 and 1,608.88 during the trading session. However, the broader market was mixed to higher, with gainers leading decliners by 565 to 438 while 502 counters remained unchanged, 961 untraded, and 14 suspended. Turnover narrowed to 2.83 billion units valued at RM2.08 billion versus 2.96 billion units valued at RM2.23 billion yesterday. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the benchmark index remained range-bound and it required a dec
The Asian market looks likely to test February highs today, with the US manufacturing sector and gains in oil prices helped to ease the pressure and worries about a global slowdown. The US stocks had already gained much higher yesterday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.6 percent in early trade, coming within striking distance of last month's peak touched on Feb. 23, its highest since early January. According to Reuters report, Chicago-listed futures point to a 2.6 percent gains in Japan's Nikkei. The market has basically been responding to the good news from the manufacturing data, which had been a major concern before this. This could probably revive expectations of a Fed rate hike. The Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) index of factory activity, a closely-watched measure of the U.S. manufacturing sector, rose more than expected last month. It also edged up for two months in a row, appearing to have snapped its almost