KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed higher, buoyed by Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) decision to maintain the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at 2.75 per cent, alongside positive cues from Wall Street. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 19.30 points, or 1.19 per cent, to 1,635.86 from Wednesday’s close of 1,616.56. The benchmark index opened 6.72 points higher at 1,623.28, and fluctuated between an intraday high of 1,642.44 and a low of 1,622.62 during the trading session. However, market breadth was negative, with losers outnumbering gainers 723 to 497, while 466 counters were unchanged, 1,075 untraded and 10 suspended. Turnover rose to 3.74 billion units valued at RM3.61 billion compared with yesterday’s 2.81 billion units valued at RM2.57 billion.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander has backed away from his previous proposal to raise the city’s income tax on the top 1% of earners , a plan initially introduced in May 2023 to address gaps in funding for critical programs. Lander, a progressive Democrat and challenger to Mayor Eric Adams in the upcoming primary, had suggested increasing the city’s top income-tax rate of 3.876% to pay for services like universal pre-kindergarten, child care, public transit, and affordable housing . However, on Monday, Lander stated that with funding for pre-kindergarten and summer programs now secured , additional revenue from tax hikes is no longer necessary. "We are not continuing to make that proposal," he said at a Manhattan breakfast hosted by the Citizens Budget Commission. "We can do universal pre-K and Summer Rising with the resources we have." High-ranking state Democrats , including Governor Kathy Hochul and Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, have voiced concerns that hig...