KUALA LUMPUR: Crude palm oil (CPO) and crude oil prices rebounded on Friday and gains in plantations and oil and gas (O&G) stocks underpinned the FBM KLCI but the ringgit fell against the major currencies.
At 12.30pm, the KLCI was up 1.19 points or 0.07% to 1,645.14. Turnover was 609.19 million shares valued at RM670mil. Losers beat gainers 447 to 201 while 287 counters were unchanged.
Crude oil prices jumped more than 5% on Friday after comments by an OPEC energy minister sparked hopes of a coordinated production cut, yet analysts said such a move remained unlikely and that oversupply would persist.
Brent crude was trading at US$31.63 per barrel, up US$1.57, or 5.22%, from its last settlement. US light crude was trading at US$27.57, up 5.19% or US$1.36.
CPO for third month delivery jumped RM30 to US$2,626 – near the highest since May 2014.
The ringgit fell in line with rest of region as stock losses spark risk aversion, Bloomberg quoted Sook Mei Leong, Southeast Asia head of global markets research at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
The ringgit slipped to 4.1830 against the US dollar from 4.1453 while it was at 6.0560 to the pound sterling from 5.9856 and declined against the Singapore dollar to 2.9946 from 2.9819.
Among the plantations, IOI Corp rose nine sen to RM4.70, KL Kepong eight sen to RM23.20, PPB Group two sen to RM15.72 but Sime fell one sen to RM7.73.
As for banks, Maybank fell five sen to RM8.49, Hong Leong Bank four sen lower at RM13, Public Bank was flat at RM18.50 while CIMB added one sen to RM4.85.
Petronas Gas led big cap O&G stocks higher, up six sen to RM22.34, Petronas Chemicals added two sen to RM15.72 but Petronas Dagangan fell two sen to RM24.98. SapuraKencana gained three sen to RM1.81.
Shell Refining extended its losses, down 20 sen to RM3.15.
LNG and petroleum shipper MISC recovered 12 sen to RM8.70 while airports operator MAHB advanced 16 sen to RM6.03.
Power giant Tenaga Nasional added two sen to RM13.20.
Among telcos, TM, Axiata and Digi added one sen each to RM6.60, RM5.60 and RM4.85 respectively. Maxis fell four sen to RM6.10.
Chip makers fell, with Globetronics down 18 sen to RM5.46, MPI 16 sen to RM7.64 and burn-in tester KESM 14 sen to RM4.26.
Genting Malaysia fell 13 sen to RM4.26 but Genting Bhd
added one sen to RM7.88.
Among the key regional markets,
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 3.77% to 15,120.84;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.53% to 18,447,14;
South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.3% to 1,837.41 and
Singapore’s Straits Times Index edged up 0.27% to 2,545.52.
Spot gold fell US$13.35 to US$1,233.35.
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