KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia ended lower on the final trading day of the week, weighed down by the plantation sector as investors locked in gains following its recent strong performance. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 7.03 points 1,708.10, compared with yesterday’s close of 1,715.13. The benchmark index opened 1.39 points lower at 1,713.74 and fluctuated between 1,704.86 and 1,715.20 throughout the day. The broader market was negative with losers outnumbering gainers 568 to 523, while 596 counters were unchanged, 1,085 untraded and 19 suspended. Turnover expanded to 4.33 billion units valued at RM2.98 billion from 3.90 billion units valued at RM3.21 billion on Thursday.
Malaysia’s ringgit breaking below 4.00/USD changes the equity leadership playbook. A strong MYR is not uniformly bullish or bearish — it reshuffles winners and losers across sectors. Below is a clean who wins / who loses framework for navigating a strong-currency regime. Who Wins from a Strong MYR 1) Index Heavyweights & Financials Why they win: Attract foreign inflows seeking currency + equity upside Lower FX volatility improves valuation confidence Balance sheets less sensitive to USD revenue translation Key beneficiaries Malayan Banking CIMB Group Holdings Market effect: Stronger MYR + inflows = index resilience , even when exporters lag. 2) Utilities & Domestic Defensives Why they win: Revenue largely ringgit-denominated Lower imported fuel, equipment, and capex costs Viewed as safe allocations by foreign funds in EM rotations Key beneficiaries Tenaga Nasional Telekom Malaysia 3) Import...