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.
Zinc prices soared to a 20-month intraday high on the London Metal Exchange (LME) after major producer Teck Resources Ltd reduced its output forecasts due to a fire at its Trail smelter in Canada. This incident has heightened supply concerns amidst a backdrop of mine disruptions . Three-month zinc futures surged by as much as 4.5% to US$3,284 (RM14,294) per tonne on the LME before settling at US$3,188 per tonne , still reflecting a 1.54% increase . Teck announced that refined zinc production this year could be up to 12% lower than previously anticipated, equating to a 40,000-tonne reduction . While this is small compared to the global market's 14 million tonnes, it has added to growing concerns about supply. Zinc has been one of the top performers on the LME this year, gaining about 20% following numerous supply disruptions. The backwardation in the zinc market—where spot prices exceed futures—has further underscored the tightness in supply. The spread between cash cont...