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.
Asian financial markets rallied on Monday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled a dovish policy stance at Jackson Hole, boosting risk sentiment across regional equities and currencies. The Malaysian ringgit gained 0.6% to 4.20 per USD , its sharpest intraday rise in three weeks, while the Indonesian rupiah climbed 0.5% to a one-week high . The Taiwan dollar advanced 0.6% and the Indian rupee strengthened 0.2%. Equities also posted strong gains, led by Taipei’s benchmark index (+2.5%) , buoyed by semiconductor shares. Jakarta and Seoul rose over 1%, while Bangkok added 0.7%. Fed Pivot Boosts Risk Assets Powell highlighted growing risks to the US job market, reinforcing expectations of monetary easing: 80% probability of a 25bps Fed rate cut in September (Sept 16–17 FOMC). Nearly 50bps of cumulative easing priced in by year-end . The US dollar index stayed near a ...