Bursa Malaysia ends higher as blue-chip bargain hunting lifts KLCI

At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 1.38 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 1,666.94, from Friday’s close of 1,665.56. — Picture by Raymond Manuel

First Published: Monday, 21 Sep 2026 6:26 PM MYT

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 21 — Bursa Malaysia ended slightly higher on Monday, supported by bargain hunting in selected blue chips as concerns over the West Asia conflict eased amid retreating oil prices.

At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 1.38 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 1,666.94, from Friday’s close of 1,665.56.

The benchmark index opened 1.36 points lower at 1,664.20 and moved between 1,661.22 and 1,674.74 throughout the session.

Market breadth was positive, with gainers outpacing decliners 654 to 552. A total of 517 counters were unchanged, 1,159 untraded and 20 suspended.

Turnover narrowed to 3.41 billion units worth RM2.8 billion, from 4.91 billion units valued at RM4.87 billion on Friday.

Berjaya Research Sdn Bhd head of research Kenneth Leong said he expects the FBM KLCI to seek stability, with any further gains likely to remain measured amid persistent external uncertainties, particularly elevated US bond yields, ongoing West Asia tensions and expectations of further US Federal Reserve tightening. 

“Investors are likely to remain selective, with the index potentially consolidating in the near term while awaiting fresh domestic and global catalysts,” he told Bernama.

From a technical perspective, Leong said the key index has formed a bullish “candlestick” pattern, although it could potentially enter a consolidation phase. “The immediate resistance levels remain at 1,687 points, followed by 1,700 points, while the supports are now at 1,655 points and 1,650 points,” he added.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the recent correction could encourage selective bargain hunting. However, the lack of fresh domestic catalysts and continued concerns over elevated US Treasury yields are likely to limit the sustainability of any near-term recovery.

“Recent trading has also shown investors shifting some attention away from index heavyweights towards smaller-cap opportunities, while sentiment towards the broader market remains mixed.

“Looking ahead, we expect the FBM KLCI to remain in consolidation mode this week in the absence of a fresh catalyst,” he added.

Thong said investors are likely to remain selective while monitoring developments surrounding the US-China summit, movements in crude oil prices and US Treasury yields.

Among the heavyweight counters, Maybank rose six sen to RM10.38, while Public Bank and CIMB both added two sen each to RM4.79 and RM7.65, respectively.

Tenaga Nasional remained unchanged at RM13.04, and IHH Healthcare eased one sen to RM7.63.

As for the most active counters, Zetrix AI and AirAsia were both flat at 20 sen and 53 sen, respectively.

Jaks Resources gained 1.5 sen to 17 sen, FSBM added three sen to 9.5 sen and HHRG dipped half a sen to 16.5 sen.

Among the top gainers, Hengyuan Refining recovered RM1 to RM4.34, Samaiden expanded 43 sen to RM2.38, and Hong Leong Bank bounced 38 sen to RM22.92.

Solarvest rallied 36 sen to RM3.69, and Petron Malaysia jumped 33 sen to RM3.79.

Of the top losers, Malaysian Pacific Industries erased 86 sen to RM41.94, Time Dotcom dropped 47 sen to RM5.94, and Sunway Construction tumbled 42 sen to RM7.46.

QL Resources lost 24 sen to RM3.95, and Press Metal Aluminium was 22 sen lower to RM7.58.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index fell 13.11 points to 12,398.61, and the FBM Top 100 Index slid 19.93 points to 12,190.44.

The FBM70 Index lost 154.88 points to 17,689.14, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index shrank 75.23 points to 12,236.76, but the FBM ACE Index gained 71.83 points to 5,316.43.

Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index trimmed 1.74 points to 183.50, and the Energy Index improved 24.81 points to 845.43. The Financial Services Index firmed 78.83 points to 19,491.46, while the Plantation Index shed 85.95 points to 9,410.49.

Main Market volume eased to 1.70 billion units worth RM2.18 billion, from 3.49 billion units valued at RM4.55 billion on Friday.

Warrant turnover decreased to 751.17 million units worth RM120.39 million, from 925.95 million units valued at RM131.87 million previously.

ACE Market volume fell to 478.26 million units valued at RM189.93 million, from 498.28 million units worth RM195.96 million on Friday.

Meanwhile, Consumer products and services counters accounted for 280.40 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (214.88 million), construction (212.04 million), technology (501.32 million), financial services (46.07 million), property (107.96 million), plantation (24.31 million), real estate investment trusts (9.51 million), closed-end fund (44,100), energy (109.17 million), healthcare (67.13 million), telecommunications and media (16.58 million), transportation and logistics (33.82 million), utilities (82.43 million), and business trusts (16,000). — Bernama