KUALA LUMPUR: Global stock markets sank on Thursday, as US President Donald Trump said the US will accelerate its attack on Iran and "finish the job" in a televised address from the White House.
The US President gave no new details on a timeline to reopen the Strait the Hormuz and restore oil supply, while suggesting the task should fall on the shoulders of oil importers.
Malaysia's benchmark FBM KLCI fell nearly 1% to 1,692.52, alongside other Asian markets. Hardest-hit in the region, Japan's Nikkei slumped 2.43% to 52,434 while South Korea's Kospi dove 4.07% to 5,255.
China's Shanghai Composite index dropped 1.17% to 2,547, the CSI 300 lost 0.74% to 4,492 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 1.09% to 25,017. In Southeast Asia, Singapore's Straits Times was down 0.78% to 4,936 while Indonesia's Composite index dropped 1.24% to 7,096.
Menawhile, US futures pointed towards heavy losses in tonight's session as investors retreat to the sidelines amid heightened uncertainty over the outcome of the war. The Dow mini indicated a 1% decline while the S&P500 shed 1.2% and the Nasdaq mini dropped 1.6%.
On Bursa Malaysia, financial services stocks slipped 1.71%, led by a sell-off in the heavyweight banks. Maybank dropped 22 sen to RM11.44, Public Bank shed eight sen to RM4.69 and CIMB lost 13 sen to RM7.58.
Malaysia's energy sector jumped 1.75% as Brent crude futures leapt 5.8% to US$107 a barrel. Rebounding from the previous day's sharp fall, PETRONAS Chemicals soared 54 sen to RM5.94.
Meanwhile, the broader market was negative with 696 declining issues compared to 338 advancing. Volume was 1.95 billion shares valued at RM1.74bil.
Of the most actively traded counters, VS Industry was down 0.5 sen to 19.5 sne, Top Glove rose four sen to 70 sen and AirAsia X
dropped six sen to RM1.15.
