KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed higher, buoyed by Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) decision to maintain the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at 2.75 per cent, alongside positive cues from Wall Street. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 19.30 points, or 1.19 per cent, to 1,635.86 from Wednesday’s close of 1,616.56. The benchmark index opened 6.72 points higher at 1,623.28, and fluctuated between an intraday high of 1,642.44 and a low of 1,622.62 during the trading session. However, market breadth was negative, with losers outnumbering gainers 723 to 497, while 466 counters were unchanged, 1,075 untraded and 10 suspended. Turnover rose to 3.74 billion units valued at RM3.61 billion compared with yesterday’s 2.81 billion units valued at RM2.57 billion.
The Bank of England (BOE) will reduce the cash buffer it holds against losses as it scales back its quantitative easing (QE) bond-buying program . Officials said this move aims to deliver better "value for money" for taxpayers. BOE Governor Andrew Bailey and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves agreed on the adjustments, which follow a reduction in the Asset Purchase Facility (APF) from £895 billion to £655 billion since early 2022. This reduction potentially offered Reeves additional budgetary flexibility for the recent budget plan on October 30 . Background : The BOE initially implemented QE to support economic growth after the 2008 financial crisis and 2020 pandemic , acquiring bonds that have now resulted in projected lifetime losses between £50 billion and £100 billion . Although QE generated a £123 billion profit when interest rates were near zero, it started to incur losses once rates surpassed 2% in 2022. Reeves confirmed that the cash management framework...