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.
As the U.S. faces the possibility of a government shutdown after midnight Friday, key government functions hang in the balance. The debate centers around a spending package rejected by Republican lawmakers, following pressure from Elon Musk , Vivek Ramaswamy , and President-elect Donald Trump’s "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) . Key Impacts of a Potential Shutdown 1. Holiday Travel Chaos Air-traffic controllers and TSA agents would continue working without pay, potentially causing: Longer security lines as seen during the 2018 shutdown. Delays at major airports like New York’s LaGuardia. 2. Stock Market and IPOs IPO Freeze : The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would furlough over 90% of its staff, halting initial public offerings and reducing market oversight. Stock Market : Historically, shutdowns have been seen as noise by investors. For example, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) g...