KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI rose slightly on Monday as Corporate Malaysia entered its final week of the earnings period.
Apex Securities expects traders to remain sselective with stock performance largely driven by corporate results and company developments.
However, it also anticipates the upside to remain modest as elevated US Treasury yields continue to weigh on global risk appetite, while ongoing Middle East tensions could keep oil prices volatile and add to inflationary concerns.
"Key catalysts this week include Nvidia’s earnings, which will provide further clues on AI demand, and the Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole symposium, where Chair Kevin Warsh’s speech will be closely watched for signals on the U.S. interest rate outlook," said the research house in its market outlook.
The FBM KLCI was up 1.31 points to 1,737.39 at 9.05am, with Kuala Lumpur Kepong lifting the index ahead of its quarterly earnings result. The plantation play rose 22 sen to RM21.86.
PETRONAS Dagangan, which is also yet to announce its earnings,dropped two sen to RM19.60.
Other big moves were seen in Sunway Construction jumping 19 sen to RM8.09 and British American Tabacco climbing 15 sen to RM4.85.
Among top actives, NexG slipped four sen to 28 sen after the government decided against acquiring its passport and MyKad supplier unit Datasonic.
AirAsia dropped 1.5 sen to 79.5 sen and Dnex was flat at 51 sen.
On the oil market, Brent crude futures for October delivery remained elevated despite dropping slightly to below US$93 amid US plans to sanction Iran.
