KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session marginally higher in range-bound trading, with selling seen across the board.
At 12.30 pm, the bellwether FBM KLCI ended 0.11 of-a-points higher at 1,770.72 against yesterday’s close of 1,770.61. The key index opened 0.2 of-a-point higher at 1,770.81.
On the broader market, losers thumped gainers 375 to 297, while 369 counters were unchanged. Turnover stood at 959.505 million shares worth RM757.938mil.
“The FBM KLCI could open flat today after a mixed performance of global equities overnight. A hefty results-driven gain for Apple shares helped push the Dow Jones Industrial Average above 22,000 for the first time although the broader picture for global equities was more cautious as commodity-focused sectors came under some pressure,” PublicInvest Research said.
Hong Leong Investment Bank Research said traders may monitor some key events such as BoE’s rate decision and non-manufacturing data on Thursday. Should there be any disappointment, the research house expect profit taking activities to pick up on the Dow Jones.
“Tracking the Dow’s movement, the FBM KLCI could be seen as a laggard move. However, the absence of fresh catalyst may cap the upside along 1,775-1,780. Nevertheless, technology and Ace market stocks are likely to stay positive over the near term,” it added.
Gainers in the FBM KLCI component stocks were led by Axiata, which contributed 1.1878 points to the index, Genting Malaysia contributed 0.2939 to the index while Maybank lifted the index by 0.1868.
Axiata closed 8 sen higher to RM4.77, Genting Malaysia rose 3 sen to RM6.09 and Maybank was unchanged at RM9.65.
Meanwhile, shares of Chemical Company of Malaysia Bhd (CCM) fell 11 sen to RM1.58 after it announced its corporate exercise to raise funds and demerge from its pharmaceutical unit.
CCM announced a series of proposals on Wednesday ranging from a private placement and land disposal to the distribution of 73.37% equity interest in the country’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturer CCM Duopharma Biotech Bhd
to CCM’s shareholders.
Leading the top gainers on Bursa Malaysia, Rev Asia rose 26.5 sen to RM1, LPI Capital gained 20 sen to RM18 and Iskandar Waterfront City increased 14 sen to RM1.37.
The decliners included Dutch Lady, Batu Kawan and NPC Resources.
Elsewhere in the region, Asian shares were lower with Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average falling 0.29%, the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.18%, South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.69% and the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was down 0.18%.
Win a prize this Mother's Day by subscribing to our annual plan now! T&C applies.
