BURSA MALAYSIA ENDS HIGHER AS CHINA'S STIMULUS MEASURES LIFT REGIONAL SENTIMENT  

By Karina Imran

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 24 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed higher on Tuesday, driven by a positive Wall Street performance overnight and after China announced a stimulus package to jumpstart its struggling economy, sparking a rally in regional and global shares.

The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 5.07 points, or 0.30 per cent, to 1,670.37 at the close from Monday’s showing.  The benchmark index opened 1.95 points higher at 1,667.25 and traded between 1,665.51 and 1,671.47 throughout today's session.

In the broader market, gainers led decliners 558 to 549, while 508 counters were unchanged, 890 untraded and 19 suspended. Turnover improved to 3.51 billion units worth RM3.10 billion from Monday's 3.36 billion units worth RM3.1 billion.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said China’s stimulus package would likely create a spillover effect for regional economies. He noted that Asian stocks surged to their highest levels in over two and a half years, driven by strong gains in China and Hong Kong stock markets. 

"The local benchmark index is re-testing the 1,670 resistance level, and we believe that breaking and holding above this level could unlock further upside. If 1,670 is breached and sustained, we anticipate additional gains. As such, we expect the FBM KLCI to trade within the 1,660-1,680 range for the rest of the week," he told Bernama. 

UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said the People’s Bank of China’s (PBOC) reduction in the bank reserve requirement ratio further bolstered market sentiment.

Additionally, Malaysia's inflation eased to a four-month low of 1.9 per cent in August, creating a favourable environment for consumer and industrial stocks. 

"Lower inflation enhanced consumers’ purchasing power, driving demand for non-essential goods, while stronger economic prospects boosted industrial stock performance," he told Bernama.

Mohd Sedek noted that Bursa Malaysia’s transportation and logistics, as well as the consumer products and services sectors, were among the top performers, benefiting from the robust Leading Index (LI) growth and easing inflation. According to the  Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), the LI registered 5.2 per cent in July 2024, reaching 115.1 points compared to 109.4 points in the same month of the previous year.

Among Bursa Malaysia heavyweight counters, Maybank added four sen to RM10.74, Tenaga Nasional surged 30 sen to RM15.04 and Public Bank fell two sen to RM4.68. CIMB Group slipped five sen to RM8.29 while IHH Healthcare was flat at RM7.11. 

As for the active counters, 99 Speed Mart Retail soared 17 sen to RM2.16, Globetronics Technology gained two sen to 71 sen and AGX Group dropped 4.5 sen to 53 sen. MY E.G. Services and Cape EMS inched down one sen to 90 sen and 35 sen, respectively. 

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 16.91 points higher at 12,522.06, the FBM Emas Shariah Index gained 32.02 points to 12,389.33 and the FBMT 100 Index added 17.83 points to 12,215.37. However, the FBM 70 Index lost 45.74 points to 17,817.64 and the FBM ACE Index eased 1.11 points to 5,184.66.

By sector, the Financial Services Index garnered 29.53 points to 19,728.37, the Energy Index climbed 6.76 points to 878.01 and the Plantation Index increased 26.09 points to 7,178.08, but the Industrial Products and Services Index shaved 0.09 of-a-point to 177.21.

The Main Market volume was lower at 1.57 billion units worth RM2.79 billion, compared to Monday's 1.85 billion units worth RM2.95 billion.

Warrant turnover increased to 1.58 billion units worth RM194.65 million from 1.19 billion units worth RM131.30 million previously.

The ACE Market volume widened to 364.94 million units worth RM119.39 million from 320.38 million units worth RM87.01 million.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 299.32 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (278.85 million), construction (148.36 million), technology (200.04 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (106.64 million), property (170.28 million), plantation (29.52 million), REITs (14.61 million), closed/fund (7,000), energy (106.60 million), healthcare (74.85 million), telecommunications and media (39.16 million), transportation and logistics (39.65 million), utilities (59.52 million), and business trusts (340,200).

-- BERNAMA