KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI closed at a two-week high on Monday, lifted by selected blue chips despite overall negative market breadth.
The benchmark index closed up 1.9 points, or 0.12%, at 1,610.95, its highest since Sept 17 when it ended at 1,611.70.
Market breadth was negative, with losers outpacing gainers 645 to 459, while turnover stood at 3.8 billion shares worth RM2.5bil.
Among the gainers, Nestle jumped RM1.06 to RM97.10, Plenitude added 36 sen to RM2.22, Bintulu Port rose 35 sen to RM5.85 and Country View climbed 22 sen to RM3.
On the other hand, Carlsberg slid 30 sen to RM16.46, Heineken fell 28 sen to RM21.30, Batu Kawan lost 24 sen to RM18.80 and Malayan Cement declined 20 sen to RM6.95.
Dealers expect the FBM KLCI to move sideways in the near term as investors remain cautious ahead of the tabling of Budget 2026.
They said sentiment will also be guided by external cues, including the potential U.S. government shutdown.
Reuters reported that President Donald Trump will meet top Democratic and Republican congressional leaders later on Monday to discuss extending government funding.
Without a deal, a shutdown would start on Wednesday, coinciding with the imposition of new U.S. tariffs on heavy trucks, patented drugs and other items. A protracted closure could also leave the Federal Reserve without key economic data when it meets on October 29.
Meanwhile, the ringgit rose 0.2% against the US dollar to 4.2140 but eased 0.07% against the Singapore dollar to 3.2673.
Regional markets ended mostly higher on Monday. South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.33%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 1.89%, China’s CSI300 advanced 1.54% and Singapore’s Straits Times Index added 0.62%. Japan’s Nikkei 225, however, slipped 0.69%.
