KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia turned marginally higher at midday, buoyed by buying interest in selected heavyweights, led by consumer products and services, financial services and utilities counters.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) edged up 0.90 of a point, or 0.05 per cent, to 1,728.61, from yesterday's close of 1,727.71.
The benchmark index, which opened 5.17 points higher at 1,732.88, moved between 1,726.36 and 1,734.32 during the morning trading session.
However, market breadth was negative with losers surpassing gainers 581 to 434, while 533 counters were unchanged, 1,156 untraded and 12 suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.83 billion units valued at RM1.40 billion.
In a research note today, Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd said that the FBM KLCI is expected to stay choppy and headline-driven, in line with Wall Street’s volatility, pressured by the fragile United States-Iran ceasefire and ongoing Strait of Hormuz tensions that have been keeping oil prices elevated.
"Rapid swings between de-escalation and escalation will continue to anchor sentiment, with no clear resolution in sight.
"Externally weak cues, alongside the peak of the first quarter of 2026 (1Q 2026) earnings season and rising domestic political noise, are reinforcing a risk-off bias,” it said.
Therefore, the investment bank said downside should be supported around the 1,700 level.
"We remain cautiously constructive on Malaysia, backed by its net oil exporter status, resilient trade linkages, exposure to the global tech upcycle, and supportive fiscal policies,” it added.
Among heavyweights, 99 Speed Mart Retail added 15 sen to RM3.43, CIMB edged up five sen to RM7.85, and YTL Power International
was six sen higher at RM4.11, while Hong Leong Bank fell 28 sen to RM21.70 and Public Bank eased three sen to RM4.80.
As for the most active counters, Oppstar increased 11 sen to RM1.04, TT Vision jumped 5.5 sen to 39.5 sen, Zetrix AI gained half a sen to 84.5 sen, SMRT rose three sen to 24.5 sen, and Genetec Technology perked one sen to 35.5 sen.
Of the top gainers, Sunway Construction jumped 23 sen to RM7.33, Westports surged 22 sen to RM6.20, Ranhill Utilities went up 11 sen to RM2.20, Gamuda added eight sen to RM4.47 and Kelington gained eight sen to RM6.99.
Among the top losers, UMS Integration lost 36 sen to RM8.04, Hong Leong Industries dropped 34 sen to RM18.14, Kuala Lumpur Kepong slid 32 sen to RM19.88, Petronas Dagangan fell 30 sen to RM19.24, and Malaysian Pacific Industries was 26 sen easier at RM42.94.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index increased 5.56 points to 12,810.33, the FBM Top 100 Index strengthened 2.05 points to 12,644.79 and the FBM ACE Index edged up 8.24 points to 4,728.29.
Meanwhile, the FBM Emas Shariah Index trimmed 2.80 points to 12,746.27, and the FBM Mid 70 Index slipped 16.43 points to 18,361.08.
By sector, the Financial Services Index reduced 38.41 points to 20,079.99, the Energy Index eased 4.66 points to 802.41, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.03 of a point to 199.63, and the Plantation Index shrank 28.46 points to 8,579.46. - Bernama
