Bursa Malaysia Flat At Midday Amid Cautious Trading, Mild Selling
By Fatin Umairah Abdul Hamid
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia was flat at midday amid mild selling pressure as investors remained cautious, weighing prospects for United States (US)-Iran diplomatic talks against elevated oil prices and bond yields, alongside a hawkish US Federal Reserve, an analyst said.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) stood at 1,671.62, after opening 0.93 of-a-point higher at 1,672.55.
The index moved between 1,668.61 and 1,674.11 throughout the morning trading session.
Market breadth was negative as losers outnumbered gainers 667 to 320, while 469 counters were unchanged, 1,468 untraded and 91 suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.85 billion shares worth RM1.15 billion.
Hong Leong Investment Bank said persistent foreign outflows, potential second-half earnings disappointments, household affordability concerns amid higher-for-longer costs, and global supply-chain disruptions could weigh on sentiment on the local bourse.
“The KLCI extended its consolidation, slipping 0.7 point to 1,671.6 after clawing back an intraday loss of 5.3 points, mirroring the cautious tone across Wall Street and regional markets, compounded by continued foreign selling,” it said in a note.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng told Bernama that with no clear reversal in regional fund flows, the index is expected to remain in consolidation and trade within the 1,665-1,680 range today.
Among the heavyweights, CIMB added six sen to RM7.96 and Tenaga Nasional rose four sen to RM13.18, while Maybank decreased two sen to RM10.20, Public Bank lost one sen to RM4.79, and IHH Healthcare reduced three sen to RM8.
In active trade, both Zetrix AI and Aimax were flat at 19 sen and 0.5 sen, respectively, Jaks Resources recovered one sen to 18 sen, ACE Market debutant Evocom fell 4.5 sen to 13.5 sen, and Inari Amertron slid 12 sen to RM2.54.
Of the top gainers, Nestle gained 18 sen to RM90.38, Hong Leong Bank added 16 sen to RM23.30, Solarvest expanded 13 sen to RM4.19, while Kuala Lumpur Kepong and MISC both ticked up 10 sen to RM22.62 and RM7.95 respectively.
Malaysian Pacific Industries led the losers list after falling RM1.38 to RM42.80, while United Plantations lost 56 sen to RM32.02, Fraser & Neave shed 40 sen to RM22.60, Kelington slipped 24 sen to RM8.75 and UWC was 21 sen lower at RM6.67.
On the index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index retreated 133.83 points to 17,711.08, the FBM Emas Index eased 28.13 points to 12,428.51, the FBM Top 100 Index reduced 23.72 points to 12,219.73, the FBM Emas Shariah Index slid 45.10 points to 12,261.13, and the FBM ACE Index shed 30.21 points to 5,502.65.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 1.35 points to 182.75, and the Energy Index erased 0.52 of-a-point to 861.31.
The Financial Services Index climbed 38.50 points to 19,588.99, while the Plantation Index shaved off 32.89 points to 9,301.98.
-- BERNAMA