KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 16 (NNN-Bernama) — Bursa Malaysia, the stock exchange of Malaysia, opened marginally lower on Wednesday due to mild profit-taking in selected heavyweights, in line with the weaker sentiment in the regional bourses, dealers said.
At 9.15 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.87 of-a-point to 1,459.41 from 1,460.28 at Tuesday’s close.
The key index opened 1.25 points easier at 1,459.03.
On the broader market, losers surpassed gainers 224 to 155, while 298 counters were unchanged, 1,663 untraded and 14 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 362.11 million units worth RM129.38 million (US$1=RM4.64).
In a note, Malacca Securities said it expects the key index to build onto its previous session gains, driven by the stable political environment, uninterrupted foreign funds inflow over the past seven consecutive trading sessions and active Employees Provident Fund members hitting an all-time high of 8.5 million, signalling a robust employment market.
“Moving forward, investors will be keeping a close tab on the United States Federal Open Market Committee’s meeting minutes that may provide additional clues over the interest rate direction in the world’s largest economy,” it said.
Meanwhile, the brokerage said the rebound in crude palm oil prices after China had unexpectedly cut its key policy rates to spur economic growth is positive for the plantation sector.
“On the other hand, the weaker crude oil prices may lead to a potential pullback in the energy sector, while profit-taking activities may emerge within the technology sector following the Nasdaq’s softer performance overnight,” it said.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank gained 1.0 sen to RM9.04 and IHH Healthcare added 2.0 sen to RM6.02, while Public Bank, CIMB and Tenaga Nasional were flat at RM4.21, RM5.68 and 9.89, respectively.
Of the actives, Classita, Tanco and KNM Group were flat at 7.5 sen, 55 sen and 8.0 sen, respectively, while Advance Synergy earned half-a-sen to 14.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 5.06 points lower at 10,743.18, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 5.50 points to 10,427.47, the FBM Emas Shariah Index fell 10.97 points to 10,939.43, the FBM 70 Index decreased 4.29 points to 14,143.53 and the FBM ACE Index shed 24.27 points to 5,310.95.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index perked 3.40 points to 16,404.55, while the Plantation Index declined 16.08 points to 7,001.39, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 0.24 of-a-point to 167.78, and the Energy Index inched down 2.31 points to 833.17.
— NNN-BERNAMA