KUALA LUMPUR: An unexpected move by U.S. President Donald Trump to impose a broad 25% tariff on Malaysian goods caught investors off guard on Tuesday, dragging Bursa Malaysia lower.
The FBM KLCI ended in the red, declining 7.4 points, or 0.48%, to close at 1,530.14, after trading between its intraday high of 1,531.14 and low of 1,526.27.
Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers with 550 stocks ending lower and 399 stocks finishing higher. Volume was 3.06 billion shares valued at RM2.2bil.
Dealers noted that Bursa Malaysia is expected to remain under pressure following news of a broad 25% U.S. tariff on Malaysian exports.
Investor sentiment is likely to stay cautious, with selling pressure concentrated in export-oriented sectors amid concerns over trade and earnings impact.
Markets are also awaiting Bank Negara Malaysia’s decision on the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) this week, which could further influence trading direction.
Malaysian Pacific Industries
, the biggest loser on Bursa Malaysia, tumbled 86 sen to RM21.42. BLD Plantation slid 26 sen to RM10.50, Hong Leong Bank declined 26 sen to RM19.46 and Heineken fell 24 sen to RM25.20.
Among the gainers, Nestle jumped RM1.66 to RM78.76, YTL Power rose 25 sen to RM4.16, Westports added 14 sen to RM5.72, and Scientex Packaging climbed 13 sen to RM1.44.
According to data from Bursa Malaysia, foreign investors offloaded RM272mil worth of equities on Monday, while local retailers sold RM1mil.
Local institutions were net buyers, accumulating RM273mil in equities.
On the forex market, the ringgit slipped 0.08% against the US dollar to 4.2388.
It also weakened 0.26% against the euro to 4.9827, declined 0.10% versus the British pound to 5.7745, and fell 0.14% against the Singapore dollar to 3.3181.
Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.54%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.26% to close at 39,688.81, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.81% to 3,114.95.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 1.09% to 24,148.07.
In China, the CSI300 advanced 0.84% to 3,998.45, and the Shanghai Composite added 0.7% to close at 3,497.48.
