KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI started flat-footed on Wednesday amid a mixed US closing overnight.
At 9.10am, the local index was down 0.57 points to 1,670.71. Trading volume was 169.32 million shares valued at RM82.36mil. There were 124 advancers versus 118 decliners and 203 counters unchanged.
This followed a rebound in yesterday's trade as the local market attempted to retrace wide losses over recent days.
"Despite the gains made, overall technical outlook still appears lacklustre as key momentum indicators are bearish," said Kenanga research.
"The index may trend lower to its support level at 1,650 (S1) and even 1,630 (S2). Conversely, immediate resistances can be found at 1,700 (R1) and 1,730 (R2)."
In early trade, the most active counters were Velesto
rising 0.5 sen to 31 sen, JCY gaining three sen to 24 sen and Dayang adding another two sen to RM1.67.
Some KLCI counters on the move included RHB, which rose 11 sen to RM5.74 and PPB climbing six sen to RM18.32.
On the decline, Petronas Dagangan lost 38 sen to RM25.32 while Hong Leong Financial Group dropped 20 sen to RM19.20.
Meanwhile, Hartalega slid seven sen to RM4.64.
In Europe overnight, UK Prime Minister Theresa May's EU exit deal was rejected by lawmakers, leading to a vote over a no-deal Brexit later tonight.
Over in the US, the Dow Jones was pressured by Boeing Co, which lost another 6.1% as more countries grounded its 737 MAX planes.
The Wall Street indice fell 0.4% although the S&P500 gained 0.3% and the Nasdaq rose 0.4%.
Oil prices edged higher on Wednesday, supported by planned cuts to Saudi exports and a reduced forecast for US crude output, Reuters reported.
International Brent crude oil futures were US$66.93 a barrel, up 26 cents, from their last close.
US crude futures were US$57.17 a barrel, up 30 cents from their last settlement.
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