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.
Key Takeaway Chinese battery giant CATL will begin production at its new Hungary plant within 4–5 months , earlier than its previous 2025-end target. With €7.3 billion invested , the facility is set to become CATL’s largest in Europe, supplying automakers like BMW, Stellantis, and Volkswagen. Details of the Expansion Location: Debrecen, Hungary Investment: €7.3 billion (US$8.55B / RM36.08B) Scale: Annual capacity of 100 GWh , with a planned 9,000-strong workforce Timeline: Production expected to start late 2025 or early 2026 Comparison: The plant will dwarf CATL’s Thuringia facility in Germany This project underscores CATL’s aggressive push to strengthen its footprint in Europe. Market Context CATL commands a 38% global EV battery market share in 2024 , up from 36% in 2023 (SNE Research). The company raised US$4.6 billion in its May Hong Kong IPO to help fund this project. Despite sluggish EV demand in Europe , CATL...