Bursa Malaysia Closes Flat On Caution As Oil Rises To US$100 Amid Escalating West Asia Conflict
By Rosemarie Khoo Mohd Sani and Fatin Umairah Abdul Hamid
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 9 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed flat on Wednesday amid investor caution as heightened tensions in West Asia pushed Brent crude oil to above US$100 per barrel, an analyst said.
At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.06 of a point, or 0.003 per cent, to 1,714.34 from Tuesday’s close of 1,714.40.
The benchmark index opened 1.06 points higher at 1,715.46 and moved between 1,710.36 and 1,718.52 throughout the trading session.
The broader market was almost evenly balanced, with gainers leading decliners 551 to 531, while 591 counters were unchanged, 1,136 were untraded, and 15 were suspended.
Turnover fell to 3.66 billion units valued at RM3.49 billion from 4.13 billion units valued at RM3.14 billion on Tuesday.
Head of Research at Berjaya Research Sdn Bhd Kenneth Leong said sentiment on the local bourse remains cautious as investors assess the potential economic impact of persistently elevated oil prices. Concerns over the inflation outlook could weigh on sentiment, particularly if higher energy costs translate into broader price pressures and raise the prospects of monetary tightening, he added.
“Technically, the key index has formed a ‘doji’ candlestick and remains within the short-term consolidation band,” he told Bernama.
He said the immediate resistance levels are located at 1,722 points, followed by 1,727 points, while near-term support remains pegged at 1,705 points and 1,700 points, respectively.
Among the heavyweight counters, Maybank fell eight sen to RM10.46, while Public Bank was flat at RM5.00, and CIMB dropped seven sen to RM7.91. Tenaga Nasional lost 16 sen to RM13.74, but IHH Healthcare gained 8.0 sen to RM7.92.
Actively traded stocks included Zetrix AI, which fell 3.5 sen to 27 sen, while Jaks Resources added one sen to 13 sen, and Gamuda gained 12 sen to RM4.92. Ni Hsin and AHB Holdings both recovered one sen to 30 sen and 5.5 sen, respectively.
MPI led the top gainers, jumping RM1.14 to RM40.96, followed by Petronas Dagangan, which rose 38 sen to RM20.30. Telekom rose 29 sen to RM8.18, UWC advanced 26 sen to RM6.78, and Kuala Lumpur Kepong was 22 sen higher at RM22.90.
The top losers included Nestle, which trimmed 1.16 sen to RM93, while F&N shed 44 sen to RM24.10. United Plantations erased 30 sen to RM33, Hong Leong Industries slipped 16 sen to RM16.90, and RHB Bank declined 13 sen to RM8.22.
On the index board, the FBM70 Index rose 37.65 points to 17,864.56, and the FBM ACE Index climbed 25.43 points to 5,297.66. The FBM Emas Index gained 9.98 points to 12,681.02, the FBM Top 100 Index firmed 6.27 points to 12,479.96, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index garnered 56.07 points to 12,506.90.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index dipped 99.92 points to 20,047.55, and the Plantation Index gave up 25.66 points to 9,449.97. The Industrial Products and Services Index ticked up 0.64 of a point to 188.06, but the Energy Index was 0.24 of a point lower at 818.53.
The Main Market volume fell to 2.34 billion units valued at RM3.19 billion compared with 2.76 billion units worth RM2.80 billion on Tuesday.
Warrant turnover expanded to 771.97 million units worth RM115.92 million versus 749.45 million units valued at RM117.20 million yesterday.
The ACE Market volume declined to 547.35 million units valued at RM191.50 million from 616.21 million units worth RM226.13 million previously.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 318.88 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (251.37 million), construction (189.97 million), technology (954.53 million), financial services (110.60 million), property (134.88 million), plantation (56.28 million), real estate investment trusts (14.08 million), closed-end fund (34,100), energy (110.15 million), healthcare (71.08 million), telecommunications and media (40.31 million), transportation and logistics (39.28 million), utilities (56.47 million), and business trusts (265,900).
-- BERNAMA