KUALA LUMPUR: Late buying of Digi and Astro
pushed the FBM KLCI to a higher close on Monday after a volatile day which saw low trading volume but on a more positive note, the ringgit managed to claw back some gains against the US dollar and the euro.
At 5pm, the KLCI was up 2.83 points or 0.16% to 1,761.99 – putting a distance from the crucial 1,750 level.
Turnover was lacklustre at 1.67 billion shares valued at RM1.67bil. The broader market was weaker with 299 gainers to 475 losers and 420 counters unchanged.
The ringgit rose 0.15% to the US dollar to 4.2778 and gained 0.17% to the euro at 4.9838 after hitting an early low of 5.0033. However, it slipped 0.08% to the pound sterling at 5.5722 and declined 0.12% to the Singapore dollar at 3.1436.
The euro hit a 23-month high on Monday against an ailing dollar, weighing on shares of European exporters before weaker-than-expected German business activity took the shine off the single currency.
Digi rose nine sen to RM4.80 and nudged the KLCI up 1.19 points, Maxis edged up one sen to RM5.55, Telekom fell two sen to RM6.33 and Axiata three sen lower at RM4.69.
IHH Healthcare fell four sen to RM5.97 and erased 0.56 of a point, Genting Bhd fell five sen to RM9.51, Westports four sen lower at RM3.70 but Genting Malaysia ended the day up seven sen to RM6.05.
Crude palm oil for third-month delivery fell RM24 to RM2,547 per tonne on rising production. KL Kepong rose two sen to RM24.76 and Sime Darby added one sen to RM9.55 but PPB Group and IOI Corp were flat at RM16.80 and RM4.48.
Among the consumer stocks, BAT was the top gainer, up 72 sen to RM44.88, Nestle 64 sen to RM83.92, Dutch Lady 30 sen higher at RM59.30 but Apollo fell 10 sen to RM5.30.
Oil slipped to one-week lows earlier on Monday, as several Opec and non-Opec ministers met to discuss a pact to curb oil output but the prospect of the group delivering deeper cuts grew more distant. However, it managed to eke out some gains, with US light crude up 10 cents to US$45.87 and Brent gained 14 cents to US$48.20.
Petronas Chemicals ended the day three sen higher at RM7 while Petronas Dagangan and Petronas Gas lost two sen each to RM23.70 and RM18.80.
HLFG rose 26 sen to RM17.18 and pushed the KLCI up 0.5 of a point, Hong Leong Bank added 12 sen to RM15.80, Public Bank rose two sen to RM20.38, RHB Bank one sen higher at RM5.09, Maybank was flat at RM9.63, Ambank shed two sen to RM5 and CIMB one sen lower at RM6.34. Insurer Allianz jumped 44 sen to RM14.60.
Managepay was among the most active stocks, with 36.68 million shares done, down 1.5 sen to 26.5 sen. Its associate Trustgate Bhd plans to seek a listing on the Leading Entrepreneur Accelerator Platform (LEAP) Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities.
IWCity lost two sen to RM1.46 in active trade as hopes for its involvement in Bandar Malaysia dissipated after last week's speculation.
Cycle & Carriage Bintang lost 11 sen to RM2.27 after it reported weaker earnings.
Among the key regional markets,
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.62% to 19,975.67;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.53% to 26,846.83;
CSI 300 gained 0.4% to 3,743.47;
Shanghai’s Composite Index added 0.39% to 3,250.60;
Hang Seng China Enterprise gained 0.31% to 10,820.95;
Taiwan’s Taiex added 0.24%to 10,461.28;
South Korea’s Kospi edged up 0.61% to 2,451.53; and
Singapore’s Straits Times Index shed 0.1% to 3,310.80.
Spot gold rose US$1.01 to US$1,255.99.
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