MONEY MASTER

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 31): The FBM KLCI slipped 14.82 points or 0.88% today amid sluggish trade a day before the Federal Territories Day tomorrow, right after the Chinese New Year weekend. The KLCI ended at 1,671.54 points, dragged down by stocks such as Tenaga Nasional Bhd, British American Tobacco (Malaysia) Bhd (BAT) and Telekom Malaysia Bhd. Mercury Securities Sdn Bhd research head Edmund Tham said trading activity was passive as there was no catalytic news flow amid uncertainties in the market. "It is slightly down when people are not around. The volume is low because of the holiday session," he said when contacted by theedgemarkets.com. At market close, there were 367 decliners versus 354 advancers and 327 counters were unchanged. Across Bursa Malaysia, a total of 1.16 billion shares worth RM1.61 billion were traded. The top gainer was United Plantations Bhd while BAT led the decliners list. The most actively-traded counter was AirAsia Bhd. Acr...

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 26): The FBM KLCI rose 8.29 points or 0.5% to its intraday high today, after the U.S.' Dow Jones Industrial Average breached the 20,000 level for first time, amid crude oil price gains. At 5pm, the KLCI settled at 1,692.22 points, following a hike in the final trading minutes on late buying of KLCI-linked Sime Darby Bhd shares. Sime Darby shares rose 12 sen to RM8.82 to become Bursa Malaysia's ninth-largest gainer. Across Bursa Malaysia, 1.41 billion shares, worth RM1.76 billion, were traded. There were 432 gainers versus 308 decliners. Mercury Securities Sdn Bhd research head Edmund Tham told theedgemarkets.com that the KLCI’s performance this week did not reflect the actual local market position. “We can notice that volume is not so good throughout this week, ahead of the long holiday. For Thursday as an example, the market mostly followed the external markets’ trend. Perhaps we can have a clearer picture of the market, after...

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 24): The FBM KLCI climbed 9.38 points or 0.6% on a stronger ringgit against a weakening U.S. dollar, amid higher crude oil prices. At 5pm, the KLCI closed at its intraday high at 1,680.69 points. The ringgit strengthened to 4.4353 against the U.S. dollar at 5:36pm. Reuters  reported the dollar struggled in Asia on Tuesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump's focus on protectionism ahead of fiscal stimulus, fuelled suspicions his administration might be content to gain a competitive advantage through a weaker currency. It was reported oil prices rose on Tuesday, on evidence the global market was tightening, as lower production by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other exporters drained stocks, although an increase in drilling in the U.S. could keep a lid on prices. Benchmark Brent crude was up 40 cents at US$55.63 a barrel by 0840 GMT. U.S. light crude was 40 cents higher at to US$53.15. In Malaysia, Malac...