KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI ended lower today but closed off its intraday low, dragged down by losses in most heavyweights.
At closing, the KLCI was down 6.78 points or 0.47% to 1,443.45. The market traded within a range of 9.15 points between an intra-day high of 1,450.32 and a low of 1,441.17 during the session.
In the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 555 to 392, with 3.33 billion shares worth RM2.04bil changing hands.
The KLCI-component stocks were overwhelmingly negative, with 27 losers and three gainers.
Among the component stocks, CelcomDigi slid 10 to RM4.40, and single-handedly took 1.6908 points off the FBM KLCI.
Maybank and RHB Bank declined one sen each to RM8.87 and RM5.66 respectively. CIMB lost five sen to RM5.54, AmBank eased three sen to RM3.67, Public Bank fell two sen to RM4.18 and Hong Leong Bank slid two sen to RM19.78.
On the broader market, Carlsberg slid 26 sen to RM19.86, Hextar Technologies fell 20 sen to RM24, British American Tobacco
eased 17 sen to RM9.33 and D & O declined 12 sen to RM3.40.
Among the gainers, Heineken jumped 60 sen to RM24.56, Panasonic Manufacturing rose 40 sen to RM19.38, Knusford gained 20 sen to 81 sen and Aeon Credit added 12 sen to RM11.48.
Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was lower by 0.7%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed 0.85% higher at 32,678.62 while South Korea’s Kospi closed down 0.5%, at 2,495.76.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 1.82%, at 17,729.29 and China’s CSI 300 index edged down 0.65% to 3,714.60.
