KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia kicked off May on a firm footing, closing at its intraday high in line with regional gains.
The FBM KLCI rose 17.75 points to 1,739.77 after hitting a low of 1,725.01, marking its biggest gain since April 8, 2026, when it climbed 1.16%.
There were 668 gainers, 501 losers and 591 counters traded unchanged on the Bursa Malaysia. Turnover stood at 3.06 billion shares valued at RM2.55bil.
Dealers said buying interest was supported by stronger regional markets, with gains in South Korea and Taiwan lifting overall sentiment.
They added that the firmer ringgit and higher oil prices also helped underpin investor confidence, driving the FBM KLCI to its intraday high.
Among the gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries
jumped RM1.38 to RM38, Hong Leong Industries added 38 sen to RM17.70, KESM gained 32 sen to RM4.40 and ViTrox climbed 31 sen to RM5.76.
On the other hand, Nestle slid RM4.60 to RM103.80, F&N lost RM1.28 to RM30.02, United Plantations fell RM1.22 to RM30.52 and PPB Group declined 26 sen to RM11.26.
On the forex market, the ringgit strengthened 0.4% against the US dollar to 3.9543, its strongest in three weeks, and rose 0.53% against the Singapore dollar to 3.1028.
Meanwhile, oil rises as the US-Iran deal remains elusive, with Brent rising US$1.51 to US$109.68 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude gaining US$1.37 to US$103.31 per barrel.
MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan index rises 1.3% as South Korea, Taiwan surge to record highs.
South Korea’s Kospi jumped 5.12% to a record 6,936.99, while Taiwan’s TAIEX climbed 4.57% to an all-time high of 40,705.14.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged up 0.38% to 59,513.12, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.24% to 26,095.88.
