KUALA LUMPUR: Trading volume of shares traded on Bursa Malaysia rose to 5.22 billion shares on Friday, the highest since March 20, on heavy trading in lower liners and penny stocks but the quality of the buying was unimpressive.
At 5pm, the KLCI was up 2.16 points or 0.12% to 1,741.72, power by late buying of selected counters. Turnover rose to 5.22 billion shares valued at RM3.38bil. The broader market was weaker with four gainers to five lowers or 425 advancers, 535 decliners and 373 counters unchanged.
Foreign funds resumed their accumulation with net buying at RM136.8mil while retail investors joined in the fray to emerge as net buyers at RM20.2mil but local institutions net sellers at RM157mil.
Reuters reported oil prices held near one-month highs on Friday after the United States attacked a Syrian air base but stocks and the dollar recovered early falls when a US official played down the risks of an escalation.
Gold surged US$12.44 to US$1,264 per troy ounce as investors sought out safe have stocks.
Hong Kong stocks hit a three-week low on Friday morning, as investors shifted to safe haven assets such as gold and bonds. China stocks, not impacted by the news on Syria, edged higher. Strength in defence shares and energy majors offset weakness in construction plays due to profit-taking after the sector's two-day rally, it reported.
The ringgit rose against the US dollar, pound sterling and the Euro. It rose to 4.4350 against the US dollar compared with the previous close of 4.4365 and advanced against the pound to 5.5151 from 5.5288. While it slipped against the Singapore dollar to 3.1636 from 3.1627 but rose 0.25% against the Euro to 4.7162 from 4.7280.
At Bursa Malaysia, Maybank rose six sen to RM9 and added 1.03 points to the KLCI, Public Bank added eight sen to RM20 while RHB Bank gained three sen to RM5.26 and AmBank edged one sen higher at RM4.85. Hong Leong lost two sen to RM13.72 and CIMB shed three sen to RM5.46.
Crude oil prices rose with US light crude oil up 81 cents to US$52.51 and Brent added 76 cents to US$55.65.
Petronas Dagangan added two sen to RM24.10, Petronas Chemicals up one sen to RM7.78 and Petronas Gas unchanged at RM19.70.
MAHB added 20 sen to RM7.20, Genting Bhd
seven sen higher at RM9.40, Genting Malaysia one sen to RM5.50 but Tenaga lost eight sen to RM13.68 and erased 0.76 of a point.
As for consumer stocks, Ajinomoto gained 50 sen to RM17.86, Carlsberg 12 sen up to RM15.10 but F&N lost 32 sen to RM23.94.
Among the telcos, Axiata rose five sen to RM5.04 and nudged the KLCI up 0.76 of a point, Digi was up one sen to RM5.09 while Maxis and TM were flat at RM6.40 and RM6.38.
Maybank call warrants C28 lost 29.5 sen to 15.5 sen and CIMB-C21 tumbled 13.5 sen to 11.5 sen.
George Kent fell 18 sen to RM4.22 on profit taking after the recent surge in its share price while Johan rose five sen to 29 sen.
Profit taking saw JHM Consolidated losing 17 sen to RM4.01.
Among the key regional markets,
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.36% to 18,664.63;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.03% to 24,267.30;
CSI 300 added 0.1% to 3,517.72;
Shanghai’s Composite Index added 0.17% to 3,286.62;
Hang Seng China Enterprise shed 0.03% to 10,273.80;
Taiwan’s Taiex lost 0.25% to 9,873.37;
South Korea’s Kospi eased 0.05% to 2,151.73 and
Singapore’s Straits Times Index eked out a 0.05% gain to 3,177.27.
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