BURSA MALAYSIA OPENS LOWER AMID WALL STREET'S RECORD GAINS

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened marginally lower on Monday as some investors engaged in profit-taking, reflecting cautious sentiment across regional markets, despite last week's record gains on Wall Street, according to an analyst.

At 9.15 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 0.67 of-a-point to 1,659.42, down from last Friday’s close of 1,660.09.

The benchmark index had initially opened 1.80 points higher at 1,661.89.

Across the broader market, decliners slightly outnumbered advancers, with 258 stocks declining compared to 219 advancing.

There were 304 counters unchanged, 1,701 untraded and 79 suspended. 

Turnover totalled 263.49 million units, valued at RM149.81 million.

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.33 per cent last Friday, closing at a record high of 42,313.00.

For this week, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd expects traders to closely monitor the US purchasing managers' index (PMI), non-farm payroll and unemployment claims. 

“Additionally, we anticipate that the impact of China’s stimulus packages will offer limited upside, following last week’s strong surge,” it said in a note today. 

Given the stronger ringgit, the firm noted that export-oriented sectors such as gloves and technology may see limited upside. 

“However, the stronger ringgit is expected to benefit domestically-driven sectors like consumer. The construction, property, building materials and utilities sectors are likely to gain momentum from data centre developments and Johor-themed catalysts in the near term.

“We believe investors may begin positioning themselves within these sectors ahead of Budget 2025,” it added.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank rose by 6.0 sen to RM10.56, while Public Bank, Tenaga Nasional, and IHH Healthcare slipped 2.0 sen each to RM4.57, RM14.64, and RM7.18, respectively.

CIMB fell 4.0 sen to RM8.20.

Among the active counters, Pegasus and Sanichi Tech remained flat at half a sen and 1.5 sen, respectively.

Capital A rose 4.5 sen to 98.5 sen, while Sapura Energy eased half a sen to 3.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index decreased by 1.52 points to 12,385.08, while the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 4.77 points to 12,308.27. 

The FBMT 100 Index fell by 0.33 of-a-point to 12,087.84, the FBM 70 Index improved by 16.54 points to 17,455.02 and the FBM ACE Index gained 7.28 points to 5,178.09.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index slipped 32.42 points to 19,433.91, the Energy Index edged down 4.06 points to 852.69, the Plantation Index advanced by 4.12 points to 7,197.35, while the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 0.02 of-a-point to 177.32.

-- BERNAMA