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.
Global financial markets opened the week on a defensive footing as U.S. President Donald Trump escalated trade tensions , announcing a 30% tariff on imports from the European Union and Mexico . The reaction was swift: S&P 500 futures dropped 0.5% , and investors rotated into safe-haven assets like gold, silver, and the Japanese yen . Market Snapshot (as of 10:32am Tokyo time) S&P 500 Futures: -0.5% Euro Stoxx 50 Futures: -0.6% Topix (Japan): -0.4% Hang Seng (HK): +0.1% Shanghai Composite: +0.4% Bloomberg Dollar Index: Flat USD/JPY: 147.04 (-0.3%) Gold: $3,360.20/oz (+0.1%) Bitcoin: $119,004.61 (-0.1%) Tariff Bombshell: Bluff or Real Risk? Trump’s unexpected move comes just days after similar tariffs on Brazil, Algeria, and Canada , shaking investor confidence in U.S. trade policy stability. “ Investors shouldn’t assume this is just a bluff, ” warned Brian Jacob...