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 government anticipates raising an extra RM5 billion by broadening the sales and service tax (SST) scope starting May 1, 2025, according to Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan . The expanded SST will increase revenue projections to RM51.7 billion , compared to RM46.7 billion currently forecast for 2025. To prevent impacting low-income groups, essential food items will be exempt from sales tax. The expanded service tax will focus on business-to-business (B2B) services , such as fee-based financial services for businesses, excluding individual consumers. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim earlier revealed that the sales tax would apply mainly to non-essential imported goods, including premium items like salmon and avocados . Amir emphasized that SST expansion will proceed progressively to avoid undue public burden, with ongoing stakeholder consultations to finalize details. Part of the SST revenue will support cash assistance programs for the public.