KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s blue chips came under selling pressure in afternoon trade on Thursday and pushed the FBM KLCI towards the crucial 1,600 level as Public Bank and Tenaga Nasional fell.
At 5pm, the KLCI was down 17.91 points or 1.11% to 1,600.92. Turnover was 2.51 billion shares valued at RM2.12bil. Decliners beat advancers more than five to one with 846 losers to 165 gainers and 258 counters unchanged.
However despite the gloomy equities market and the fall in crude oil prices, the ringgit managed to recover against the major currencies.
The ringgit firmed up to 4.3815 against the US dollar from 4.3950 while it was at 6.2097 to the pound sterling from 6.2141. It steadied against the Singapore dollar to 3.0465 from 3.0500.
Hong Kong shares finished lower on Thursday after an afternoon sell-off in mainland China markets. The Hang Seng index fell 1.8% to 18,542.15 while the China Enterprises Index lost 2.2% to 7,835.64.
Power giant Tenaga and Public Bank posted their biggest one-day losses in recent weeks. Tenaga lost 26 sen to RM12.62 and erased 2.42 points from the KLCI.
Public Bank fell 28 sen to RM17.86 and wiped out 1.79 points. HLFG fell 56 sen to RM12.72, RHB Capital 14 sen to RM5.08, Hong Leong Bank lost 12 sen to RM12.88, Maybank 10 sen to RM8.81, and CIMB three sen to RM3.94.
Crude oil skidded again, with US light down 43 cent to US$27.92 and Brent 51 cents to US$27.37.
Petronas Chemicals and Petronas Gas fell eight sen each to RM6.91 and RM21.02 while Petronas Dagangan was flat at RM23.80. SapuraKencana fell nine sen to RM1.53.
Crude palm oil for third-month delivery fell RM29 to RM2,426. Genting Plantations rose 26 sen to RM10.28, PPB Group four sen to RM15.62 and IOI Corp three sen to RM4.33 but KL Kepong fell 18 sen to RM22.62 and Sime Darby nine sen to RM7.07.
BAT was the top loser, sliding RM1.46 to RM54.50 but Carlsberg rose 12 sen to RM11.60 and GAB four sen to RM13.50.
Scientex lost traction in the recent selling bout to slide 38 sen to RM10.80. MPI again reversed course and the chip maker lost 29 sen to RM9.61, Can-One
fell 28 sen to RM4.27.
Poultry-based Huat Lai rose 21 sen to RM4.97 and Lay Hong rebounded two sen higher to RM8.12.
Among the key regional markets,
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.43% to 16,017.26;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index lost 1.82% to 18,542.15;
CSI 300 lost 2.93% to 3,081.34;
Shanghai’s Composite Index fell 3.23% to 2,880.48;
Shenzhen Composite skidded 4.01% to 1,800.99;
Hang Seng China Enterprise lost 2.24% to 7,835.64;
Taiwan’s Taiex was down 0.46% to 7,664.01;
South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.27% to 1,840.53;
Singapore’s Straits Times Index lost 1.16% to 2,530.17.
Spot gold shed 79 cents to US$1,10.13.
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