KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia languished in the red for most of the day but managed to eke out paltry gains to settle at an intraday high on Wednesday due to late buying interest in selected heavyweights led by industrial products and financial services sectors.
At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) inched up 0.68 of-a-point, or 0.05 per cent, to close at 1,524.50 from Tuesday’s close of 1,523.82.
The benchmark index opened 0.28 of-a-point higher at 1,524.10 and hit a low of 1,516.96 during the morning session.
However, the broader market was negativeve, with losers outpacing gainers 570 to 377, while 508 counters were unchanged, 1,076 untraded and 89 suspended.
Turnover declined to 2.65 billion units worth RM2.07 billion from 3.36 billion shares worth RM2.18 billion yesterday.
UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd’s head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said the market barometer traded within a narrow range for most of the day, hovering around 1,522, before a sharp uptick in the final 10 minutes pushed it to close at 1,524.50.
He said the financial services counters lagged earlier in the session, pressured by the widening divergence in monetary policy between Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and the United States (US) Federal Reserve (Fed).
“Earlier this month, BNM cut the Overnight Policy Rate by 25 basis points to 2.75 per cent and the Fed is widely expected to keep its benchmark rate unchanged at 4.33 per cent.
“This growing policy gap has amplified the risk of capital outflows from interest rate–sensitive sectors, prompting foreign investors to reduce their positioning in Malaysian financials,” he told Bernama.
Mohd Sedek also noted that markets are beginning to price in increased volatility, with less than 48 hours remaining before the US tariff negotiation deadline and ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decision later tonight.
Meanwhile, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng expects investors to gradually re-enter the market, anticipating potential catalysts such as regional policy easing, progress on trade negotiations, and renewed interest in undervalued blue-chip stocks.
“We retain our weekly FBM KLCI target at between 1,510 and 1,540,” he said.
Heavyweights Petronas Chemicals (PChem) rose 28 sen to RM4.07, Public Bank gained eight sen to RM4.29, and Hong Leong Bank was 26 sen higher at RM19.30, while CIMB slipped nine sen to RM6.55 and Maybank lost seven sen to RM9.45.
Tenaga Nasional fell four sen to RM13.28 and IHH Healthcare climbed three sen to RM6.63.
Of the most active counters, NexG and Zetrix AI were flat at 53 sen and 84.5 sen, respectively, Lotte Chemical Titan advanced four sen to 72 sen, while Tanco slid nine sen to 83.5 sen, and Pharmaniaga erased two sen to 16 sen.
Besides PChem, other top gainers were Chin Teck Plantations which garnered 27 sen to RM9.76, Hong Leong Bank rose 26 sen to RM19.30, and Far East Holdings surged 20 sen to RM4.
Among the top losers, Nestle fell 40 sen to RM87.40, Fraser and Neave dipped 30 sen to RM28.60, and Allianz Malaysia slid 28 sen to RM17.42.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
