Bursa retreats after opening higher on selling pressure
Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Wednesday but retreated shortly after, weighed down by selling activity in selected heavyweight counters, led by financial services and industrial products and services.
At 9.11am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 3.68 points to 1,629.67 from Tuesday’s close of 1,633.35. The index opened 0.19 points higher at 1,633.54.
However, on the broader market, gainers outpaced decliners 221 to 180, with 306 counters unchanged, 2,083 untraded and 13 suspended.
Turnover stood at 327.37 million units worth RM150.56 million.
Hong Leong Bank eased 10 sen to RM21.98, CIMB slid 15 sen to RM7.55, and Press Metal Aluminium fell six sen to RM7.13. These three counters collectively pulled down the composite index by a combined 7.23 points.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng noted that Wall Street maintained its positive momentum overnight, with the S&P 500 testing an intra-day record high underpinned by a tech-inspired rally.
“This is despite the US 10-year yield remaining elevated at 5.286% while Brent stayed above the US$100 per barrel mark. Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index maintained its uptrend, underpinned by renewed interest in tech-related stocks as sentiment recovered amid the steadying crude oil prices,” he told Bernama.
Back home, Thong said he is anticipating bargain-hunting activities to emerge, although any upside may be hampered by selling from foreign funds following the FBM KLCI’s mildly positive close yesterday. “In view of this, we expect the index to continue consolidating within the 1,630-1,640 range today,” he added.
Among other heavyweights, AMMB slipped five sen to RM6.42, Petronas Gas erased eight sen to RM17.20, and Mr D.I.Y. edged down one sen to RM1.24. IHH Healthcare added three sen to RM7.94, and Maybank gained two sen to RM9.99.
In active trade, Top Glove gained 5.5 sen to 93 sen, and Supermax added 2.5 sen to 48.5 sen, while Zetrix AI and Ni Hsin inched down half a sen each to 8.5 sen and 37 sen, respectively. Metronic Global was flat at half a sen.
Among the top gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries jumped 62 sen to RM45.58, Nestle gained 32 sen to RM91.58, and Mi Technovation rallied 19 sen to RM6.19. Critical Holdings bounced 12 sen to RM2.81, and Hengyuan Refining Company gained nine sen to RM3.55.
Among the top losers, TMK Chemical cut eight sen to RM2.61, and Pekat fell five sen to RM2.91, while Stratus Global and Solarvest slipped four sen each to RM3.09 and RM4.33, respectively. Malaysia Smelting shrank three sen to RM1.65.
On the index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index gained 61.25 points to 17,795.36, the FBM Emas Index cut 5.46 points to 12,227.41, and the FBM Top 100 Index lost 9.15 points to 12,006.63.
The FBM Emas Shariah Index gained 26.12 points to 12,185.10, and the FBM ACE Index edged up 0.94 points to 5,659.86.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.09 points to 180.32, the Energy Index gained 6.79 points to 847.51, and the Financial Services Index lost 134.06 points to 18,933.94.
The Plantation Index gained 9.57 points to 9,051.74.
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