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.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) expects global growth to stabilize at 3.2% in both 2024 and 2025, as the impact of central bank rate hikes diminishes and declining inflation supports household incomes . In its latest forecast, the OECD slightly raised its 2024 outlook from 3.1% while keeping 2025 growth unchanged. The OECD highlighted that as inflation continues to fall and interest rate cuts are introduced, consumer spending is likely to benefit, boosting economic activity. If recent declines in oil prices persist, global headline inflation could be 0.5 percentage points lower over the coming year. The US Federal Reserve's interest rate is expected to decrease to 3.5% by the end of 2025, and the European Central Bank could lower rates to 2.25% by then. The US economy is projected to slow from 2.6% growth in 2024 to 1.6% in 2025, while China's growth is expected to decelerate from 4.9% to 4.5% over the same period, due to weak...