KUALA LUMPUR: Market sentiment remained weak throughout Wednesday when Bursa Malaysia resumed trading after a one-day break as foreign fund selling of banks and plantation stocks helped push the FBM KLCI down more than 20 points.
At 5pm, the KLCI was down 20.79 points or 1.23% to 1,665.32. Turnover was 2.34 billion shares valued at RM2.30bil. Declining stocks beat advancers 710 to 279 while 254 counters were unchanged.
Foreign funds turned net sellers at nearly -RM275mil.
Reuters reported Hong Kong shares finished down on Wednesday as losses in financial and energy stocks undercut gains in Chinese social media and mobile technology firm Tencent.
However, China stocks closed up as investors wagered on further stimulus after a mixed batch of data showed growth in Asia's giant economy remained lacklustre at best.
Despite the weak equities scenario, the ringgit closed up firmer against the US dollar, pound sterling and the Singapore dollar.
The ringgit firmed up to 4.3675 to the US dollar from 4.3825 while it was at 6.6269 to the pound from 6.6202 and against the Singapore dollar it was 3.0735 versus 3.0843.
The weakening crude palm oil (CPO) prices battered plantation stocks with third-month delivery down RM54 to RM2,330.
Malaysia's total palm oil stocks in October rose 7.29% to 2.83 million tonnes against 2.64 million tonnes in September, Bernama quoted the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) as saying.
KL Kepong fell 44 sen to RM22.96, Chin Tek 35 sen to RM8.15 and Genting Plantations 22 sen to RM10.22. Sime Darby lost 17 sen to RM8.13, IOI Corp six sen to RM4.28 but PPB Group added 14 sen to RM15.74.
As for banks, Maybank fell 17 sen to RM8.22 and erased 2.7 points from the KLCI. Public Bank was down 36 sen to RM17.82 and wiped out 2.32 points. Also down 36 sen was Hong Leong Bank to RM13.70.
HLFG fell 54 sen to RM13.58 and HLFG-OR 52 sen to RM1.87. This was the second day of trading for the rights shares. AmBank was down 15 sen to RM4.62, CIMB seven sen to RM4.60 but RHB Cap added two sen to RM6.25.
US light crude oil fell 42 cents to US$43.79 and Brent shed 11 cents to US$47.33. Petronas Chemicals lost four sen to RM6.50, SK Petro shed three sen to RM6.25 and Petronas Gas two sen to RM22.90 but local fund support saw Petronas Dagangan climbing 94 sen to RM24.08.
Hibiscus Petroleum fell six sen to RM30.5 sen in active trade after it announced it struck a dry well in the Sea Lion 1.
Glove makers bucked the trend, with Top Glove ip 28 sen to RM10 and Hartalega
15 sen higher ay RM5.65.
Ge-Shen jumped 27 sen to RM1.73 on its strong earnings.
Crude palm oil for third-month delivery fell on higher palm oil stocks.
Malaysia's total palm oil stocks in October rose 7.29% to 2.83 million tonnes against 2.64 million tonnes in September, Bernama quoted the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) as saying.
Among the key regional markets,
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.1% to 19,691.39;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.22% to 22,352.17;
Shanghai’s Composite Index rose 0.27% to 3,650.25;
Taiwan’s Taiex fell 1.43% to 8,415.01;
South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.03% to 1,997.27 and
Singapore’s Straits Times Index fell 0.54% to 2,981.59.
Spot gold rose 41 cents to US$1,090.08.
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