KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia rebounded to close higher on Wednesday on selective buying of defensive stocks after a volatile trading session. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said consumer products and services stocks lifted the key index higher, overcoming lingering geopolitical concerns. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 3.08 points to 1,715.56 from yesterday’s close of 1,712.48. The benchmark index, which opened 1.91 points higher at 1,714.39, moved between 1,710.79 and 1,720.59 during the day’s trading. In the broader market, gainers outstripped decliners 550 to 476, while 612 counters were unchanged, 1,129 untraded, and 48 suspended. Turnover rose to 2.96 billion units valued at RM2.48 billion from 2.94 billion units valued at RM2.56 billion on Tuesday.
Poh Kong Holdings Bhd (KL: POHKONG) reported a record-breaking annual earnings of RM116.9 million for its financial year 2024, a 49% increase from RM78.4 million in FY2023. The surge in earnings is attributed to rising gold prices , which hit an all-time high of US$2,636.85 (RM11,003.58) per ounce on Tuesday, driven by dovish signals from the US Federal Reserve and escalating tensions in the Middle East. The company’s cumulative revenue for FY2024, which ended on July 31, rose by 11.7% to RM1.64 billion , up from RM1.47 billion in FY2023. Earnings per share also climbed to 28.49 sen , compared to 19.12 sen in the previous year. For the fourth quarter, net profit skyrocketed more than fourfold to RM22.03 million from RM4.98 million a year ago, while revenue grew 8.5% to RM342.5 million . The company credited this growth to increased demand for gold jewellery and gold investment products . In response to its strong financial performance, Poh Kong has proposed a final single...