BURSA RISES ON HOPES OF IMPROVED US-CHINA TIES

By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad

KUALA LUMPUR, April 23 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street amid hopes that trade tensions between the United States and China may ease.

At 9.19 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 12.09 points to 1,498.34 from Tuesday’s close of 1,486.25.

The benchmark index had opened 11.11 points higher at 1,497.36.

Market breadth was positive, with 364 gainers outpacing 106 decliners. A total of 226 counters were unchanged, 1,709 untraded and 11 suspended.

Turnover stood at 311.53 million shares, valued at RM170.09 million.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd’s equity research vice-president, Thong Pak Leng, attributed the optimism to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s comments, which suggested that the current trade situation was unsustainable and a de-escalation was expected.

“Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump reiterated that he has no intention to get rid of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, as the US 10-year yield eased slightly to 4.401 per cent,” he told Bernama.

Thong believes the FBM KLCI may receive buying support today, buoyed by Wall Street’s sharp rebound.

“We expect the index to hover between the 1,490-1,500 range today,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mohd Sedek Jantan, head of investment research at UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd, expects the FBM KLCI to trade higher today, reflecting the developments in the Trump-Powell standoff and trade tariffs.

“Trump has clarified he has no intention of dismissing Powell, though he desires a more proactive stance on lowering interest rates. 

"On China tariffs, Trump indicated that US tariffs, currently at 145 per cent, would be substantially reduced. These developments have eased market concerns, at least temporarily,” he said.

Among heavyweights, Maybank and Public Bank each gained two sen to RM9.97 and RM4.39, respectively. Tenaga Nasional added twn sen to RM13.50, CIMB rose five sen to RM6.80, and IHH Healthcare gained three sen to RM6.87.

In active trade, Pertama Digital rose 1.5 sen to 14 sen, Harvest Miracle Capital added half-a-sen to 14 sen, MSB lost half-a-sen to 16 sen, while Avangaad and Ingenieur Gudang remained unchanged at 28 sen and 3.5 sen, respectively.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index gained 92.96 points to 11,091.98, the FBMT 100 Index rose 91.92 points to 10,878.88, the FBM Emas Shariah Index advanced 104.90 points to 10,903.34, the FBM 70 Index increased 147.71 points to 15,504.10, and the FBM ACE Index added 7.38 points to 4,568.48.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index surged 96.68 points to 17,946.63, the Industrial Products and Services Index ticked up 1.88 points to 144.34, the Energy Index climbed 5.99 points to 660.42, and the Plantation Index gained 30.03 points to 7,246.35.

-- BERNAMA