KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI is en route to a fourth straight day of losses as investors take profit ahead of Chinese economic data and a US Fed policy meeting next week.
According to Reuters, China's May industrial production and retail sales and investment figures will be released on 3pm local time today.
At 12.30pm, the local benchmark index was down 3.83 points to 1,639.91. Trading volume was 1.02 billion shares valued at RM690.7mil.
There were 403 decliners verus 232 gainers and 335 counters unchanged.
Greatech Technology topped the active trading list for the second day, gaining 10 sen to 84 sen.
Other top active counters included Ekovest falling 0.5 sen to 83.5 sen and IWCity rising one sen to RM1.
Heavyweights seeing positive price action included Genting rising 11 sen to RM6.59, Petronas Chemicals adding four sen to RM8.35 and Axiata adding two sen to RM4.72.
Decliners were led by Public Bank shaving 16 sen to RM23.26, Petronas Gas falling 18 sen to RM17.58 and Tenaga Nasional dropping eight sen to RM12.24.
In Greater China, the Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.3% and the CSI300 Index slid 0.1% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell another 0.5% amid political protests.
Japan's Nikkei Index rose 0.3% while South Korea's Kospi fell 0.3%.
In commodities, an attack on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman sent crude prices higher. US crude rose 24 cents to US$52.52 a barrel and Brent crude gained 49 cents to US$61.80 a barrel.
In currencies, the ringgit was 0.1% lower against the greenback at 4.1683, 0.15% weaker against the pound sterling at 5.2834 and flat against the Singapore dollar at 3.0475
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