FBM KLCI opens lower but rebounds 1.01% at midday

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened lower but trended higher at midday, despite negative cues from the global equity market.

At lunch break, the benchmark FBM KLCI surged 14.26 points, or 1.01% to 1,429.36, with 24 of KLCI-components stocks closing higher.

On the broader market, there were 368 gainers, 348 losers and 341 counters traded unchanged on the Bursa Malaysia. Turnover stood at 1.14 billion shares valued at RM805mil.

Among the gainers, Nestle surged RM1.30 to RM134, Hextar Technologies jumped 70 sen to RM7.80, Hong Leong Bank rose 56 sen to RM21.42 and Panasonic Manufacturing added 40 sen to RM22.90.

Losers include Ayer Holdings fell 25 sen to RM5.95, SAM Enginerring shed 18 sen to RM5.03, Rapid declined eight sen to RM14.70 and Paragon eased seven sen to RM1.78.

Mercury Securities expects Malaysian equities to be volatile in the short-term amid fears of a global recession.

Rakuten Trade reckons trading on the local bourse to be lacklustre today impacted by the surging rates in the US.

“As such, we expect the benchmark index to trend between 1,395-1,420 as the technology stocks may see some selling today,” it added.

Meanwhile, crude palm oil remained above RM4,000/tonne due to lower output from bad weather while the Brent crude price rebounded to above US$92/barrel.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 99.99 points, or 0.33%, to finish the day at 30,423.81. The Nasdaq Composite lost 0.85% to close at 10,680.51 while the S&P 500 ticked down 0.67% to 3,695.16.

Meanwhile, Malaysians will go to the polls for the 15th general election (GE15) on Nov 19, with early voting set for Nov 15.

Election Commission (EC) chairman Abdul Ghani Salleh announced that nominations will be on Nov 5.