KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's main stock index succumbed to selling pressure in the early session, affirming the consolidation that has taken root in the local market.
At 12.30pm, the FBM KLCI was down 2.24 points to 1,609.19 as profit-taking activity erased the gains recorded earlier in the day.
The market breadth was nearly even with 445 gainers compared to 435 decliners, after 1.59 billion shares changed hands for RM1.1bil.
Some notable decliners on the market included United Plantations dropping 38 sen to RM31.42, Dutch Lady
sliding 36 sen to RM30.24 and PETRONAS Gas falling 32 sen to RM17.38.
Of actives, Top Glove rose four sen to RM1.37, Supermax jumped four sen to RM1.07 and JCY added 0.5 sen to 48.5 sen.
Meanwhile, key Asian markets were mostly higher, spurred on by Beijing's move to loosen monetary policy in a bid to stabilise markets.
However, gains were capped as investors awaited the release of key US inflation data that will sway the Federal Reserve's decision at the coming monetary policy meeting.
In China, the Shanghai Composite index rose 1.57% to 3,456 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 1% to 20,618.
Japan's Nikkei gained 0.33% and Singapore's Straits Times added 0.52% to 3,814.
South Korea's Kospi, meanwhile, bounced 2.13% higher to 2,410 as anxieties over the political crisis eased.
