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.
Britain’s natural gas production is falling more rapidly than anticipated, sparking concerns over rising dependence on imports, according to Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) , an industry group urging government intervention to boost investment. Production has dropped 13% this year through August, with a similar rate of decline expected for the entirety of 2024. This is worse than the 10% decline initially forecast for the UK’s aging North Sea basin , said Ross Dornan , market intelligence manager at OEUK. "There is not a huge amount of new production coming through," Dornan added. OEUK is seeking support in the Autumn Budget on Oct. 30 to stimulate domestic energy investment, especially after the previous government’s windfall tax on oil and gas profits during the energy crisis. The Labour Party plans to increase this levy further, which OEUK warns could result in an 80% slump in oil and gas investment over the next five years. UK gas output has fallen by more than half i...