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.
Air-France KLM and Deutsche Lufthansa AG are urging their respective governments to take action against the rising number of flights from Chinese carriers to Europe, which they argue creates unfair competition. Air-France KLM is lobbying the French government to cap the number of Chinese flights, while Lufthansa is pushing for Germany to challenge Beijing over the perceived distorted rivalry. Chinese airlines have gained a competitive edge by flying over Russian airspace , saving time and offering cheaper fares, while European airlines are unable to do the same due to restrictions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Lufthansa plans to cut its Frankfurt-Beijing flights by the end of this month, citing unprofitability from using older, fuel-inefficient jets on the route. The competition has been further fueled by Chinese government subsidies , with the three largest Chinese airlines receiving 111.1 billion yuan (US$15.7 billion) in grants. By the end of this year, Chines...