KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia finished higher at midday, boosted by bargain-hunting force after several days of correction.
At 12.30pm, the FBM KLCI closed up 5.05 points, or 0.34% at 1,470.98. The index opened 1.97 points higher at 1,467.90 this morning.
The index’s reversal was mainly driven by gains in selected banking and telco stocks as recent falls stimulated some investors to acquire.
Hong Leong Investment Bank Research said KLCI’s near-term consolidation will persist as investors await more policy leads from the unity government and weigh on external volatility fuelled by inflation and interest rate jitters ahead of the 13-14 FOMC meeting.
“As long as the index is able to maintain its posture above 1,454 or support trend line (from 2Y low of 1,373), we remain optimistic that KLCI could resume its upward momentum after a brief consolidation.
“Key supports are pegged at 1,436-1,454 whilst resistances are situated at 1,482-1,502-1,528 zones,” it added.
Meanwhile, Malacca Securities said the global stock markets are deploying a wait-and-see approach as investors are waiting for more details from the upcoming FOMC meeting, focusing on the US Fed’s interest rate decision next week.
“Nevertheless, we believe some bargain hunting activities to emerge on the domestic front following the Covid-19 easing measures in China,” it said.
Among the gainers on Bursa Malaysia, Nestle jumped 60 sen to RM135.80, Tenaga advanced 22 sen to RM9.37, Vitrox gained 20 sen to RM7.80 and PETRONAS Gas rose 12 sen to RM16.64.
Carlsberg fell 24 sen to RM22.84, Kuala Lumpur Kepong eased 20 sen to RM20.88, Chin Tek lost 18 sen to RM8.32 and Signature International declined 10 sen to RM2.83.
Sapura Energy
, which returned to the black in the third quarter, rose 0.5 sen to 4.5 sen with 194.6 million shares traded.
It posted a net profit of RM10.18mil in the third quarter ended Oct 31 against a net loss of RM669.34mil in the previous year’s corresponding quarter.
