KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia started the week on a firmer footing, shrugging off external risks to track a regional rally that lifted several Asian markets to fresh highs.
The FBM KLCI rose 10.56 points, or 0.63%, to 1,680.32 after touching an intraday high of 1,681.94. All indices on Bursa Malaysia ended higher, except for the Transportation & Logistics Index.
Market breadth turned positive as gainers overpowered the losers on a ratio of 641-to-455 stocks. Traded volumes stood at 2.53 billion shares worth RM2.4bil.
Dealers said the local market tracked regional peers as investors set aside external risks and focused on positive cues from Asian equities.
Among the gainers, Nestle rose RM1.20 to RM115.70, F&N added 58 sen to RM35.78, Hong Leong Financial Group gained 50 sen to RM19.48 and Hong Leong Bank climbed 44 sen to RM22.72.
On the other hand, LPI Capital slid 40 sen to RM14.58, Hong Leong Industries fell 36 sen to RM16.24, Chin Tek lost 18 sen to RM10.22 and United Plantations declined 10 sen to RM30.
Emerging Asian equities climbed to their highest level in nearly five years on Monday, driven by record gains in Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Indonesia, Reuters reported.
MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index rose 1.26%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged 2.97% to 51,832.80, while South Korea’s Kospi jumped 3.43% to close at 4,457.52.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended nearly flat at 26,347.24. In China, the CSI 300 advanced 1.9% to 4,717.75, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.38% to 4,023.42.
