Local bourse takes a breather ahead of US inflation report

Genting slumped 15 sen to RM6.80 and erased 1.01 points while GentingM was down three sen to RM3.25 following the recent corporate news which were viewed as negative by investors.

KUALA LUMPUR: The local bourse pulled back slightly by midday as caution took over global equities ahead of the US inflation report that would shed more light on the pace of US interest rate hikes this year.

At 12.30pm, the benchmark FBM KLCI was pulled ahead by Nestle and Public Bank. Turnover was 1.19 billion shares with a value of RM757.28mil. Decliners outpaced advancers 483 to 296 with 381 counters unchanged.

Consumer giant Nestle has been on a stellar rise, putting on about 56% since the start of the year. At midday, the stock was RM7.30 higher at RM157.80.

Other sector-related stocks on the broader market have also been on an uptrend. F&N gained Rm1.30 to RM33 while Dutch Lady moved up RM3.48 to RM71.18.

On the KLCI, Public Bank also put on 34 sen to hold on to its historical high  of RM23. Other banks on the rise include Hong Leong Bank, gaining 10 sen to RM18.78, and Maybank adding two sen to RM10.46.

Stocks that weighed down the index include Maxis, slipping eight sen to RM5.90; MISC, falling 12 sen to RM6.87; and Genting Malaysia, dropping nine sen to RM5.21.

Bermaz Auto is in the spotlight on Tuesday as its third quarter earnings for the year rebounded 61.2% on year. 

RHB Investment Research said it was remained positive on the counter in its Tuesday research note. 

"We expect earnings to trend higher going forward as Bermaz refreshes the Mazda model range with the seven-seater CX-8, and new Mazda 6, helped by rising exports to regional markets," it said.

Meanwhile, stocks under pressure included Hengyuan, falling 23 sen to RM9.02; Petron Malaysia, dropping 52 sen to RM9.96; and MPI sliding 20 sen to RM8.80.

Production of US crude oil continued to rise causing a further slide in oil prices. The International Energy Agency said US production is expected to rise above 11 million barrels per day by late 2018, taking the top spot from Russia. 

WTI crude dropped 14 cents to US$61.24 a barrel while Brent crude fell 11 cents to US$64.64 a barrel.

In currencies, the ringgit was little changed against the greenback at 3.9050, following the latter's tumble yesterday as low wage data decreased the possibility of a greater pace of interest rate hikes. 

The local currency was also little changed against the Singapore dollar at 2.9727 and the pound sterling at 5.4229.