Bursa Malaysia Ends Morning Session Lower Amid Ongoing West Asia Tensions
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 26 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session lower today, weighed down by escalating geopolitical tensions in West Asia.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) dropped 9.51 points, or 0.59 per cent, to 1,602.05 from last Friday’s close of 1,611.56.
The benchmark index opened 0.44 of a point firmer at 1,612.00, its highest level so far today, before hitting its lowest level of 1,601.92 at mid-morning.
In the broader market, losers outpaced gainers 505 to 353, while 476 counters were unchanged, 1,567 untraded, and 59 suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.63 billion units worth RM807.51 million.
Apex Securities Bhd said geopolitical uncertainties remain the dominant swing factor impacting the market, with Iran’s warning of renewed strikes and reports of a possible United States (US)-Israel response keeping Brent crude above US$114 a barrel and weighing on risk appetite across Wall Street and Europe on Friday.
“The US Federal Reserve’s rate decision on Wednesday is the week’s key catalyst, with markets watching for any shift in tone after the 10-year Treasury yield pushed back toward 5.00 per cent.
“Barring a fresh escalation in West Asia, we expect the FBM KLCI to trade cautiously into the new week, with elevated oil prices offering some support to energy and plantation-linked counters even as the broader risk tone stays fragile,” the brokerage firm said in a note today.
Among the heavyweight stocks, Maybank fell seven sen to RM9.90, Public Bank trimmed five sen to RM4.70, Tenaga Nasional declined 12 sen to RM13.18, CIMB gave up six sen to RM7.09, and IHH Healthcare inched down one sen to RM7.89.
In active trade, Zetrix AI eased half a sen to seven sen, Ni Hsin slipped two sen to 47 sen, JAKS Resources slid 1.5 sen to 15 sen, while Axteria gained five sen to 19 sen, and Revenue IF edged up half a sen to nine sen.
Solarvest led the top gainers, surging 21 sen to RM4.21, while PPB Group added 17 sen to RM8.95, Ge-Shen perked up 15 sen to RM1.40, ViTrox Corporation climbed 14 sen to RM10.60, and Frontken Corporation garnered 12 sen to RM5.11.
Among the top losers, United Plantations fell 34 sen to RM30.06, YTL Power decreased 29 sen to RM5.03. Batu Kawan retreated 28 sen to RM19, Dutch Lady Milk declined 20 sen to RM28.40, and Sarawak Plantation erased 17 sen to RM4.12.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slid 42.35 points to 11,951.10 and the FBM Top 100 Index dipped 46.26 points to 11,751.35.
The FBM Emas Shariah Index was 1.67 points lower at 11,941.90 and the FBM ACE Index fell 3.59 points to 5,342.55, while the FBM Mid 70 Index rose 30.76 points to 17,201.09.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index notched up 0.36 of a point to 175.76 and the Energy Index improved 12.90 points to 847.57, but the Financial Services Index tumbled 115.91 points to 18,538.41 and the Plantation Index eased 39.27 points to 8,638.21.
-- BERNAMA