KUALA LUMPUR: The domestic market is expected to remain range-bound in the final days of 2025 trading, with a prevailing cautious sentiment amid a lack of buying catalysts.
The FBM KLCI dropped 3.33 points to 1,677.66 after late buying in the previous session pushed it into positive territory.
Rakuten Trade said traders remain sidelined due to another holiday-shortened trading week, although the market remains poised to close 2025 on a positive note.
"With the 1,700 now within touching distance, we are hopeful this enigmatic level will be broken soon. For today, we expect the index to hover within the 1,675-1,685 range," it said in a note.
Overnight, Wall Street shares stepped back from record levels although defensive stocks that underperformed earlier in the year stepped up to offset losses.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 249.04 points, or 0.51%, to 48,461.93, the S&P 500 fell 24.19 points, or 0.35%, to 6,905.75 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 118.75 points, or 0.50%, to 23,474.35.
On Malaysia's blue-chip index, laggards included Nestle down 70 sen to RM115, PETRONAS Dagangan dropping 18 sen to RM19.62 and Tenaga Nasional sliding 10 sne to MR13.78.
Of actives, TWL was flat at 2.5 sen, MQ Technology rose 0.5 sen to nine sen and Mega Fortris slid 1.5 sen to 78.5 sen.
