BURSA MALAYSIA OPENS HIGHER TRACKING WALL STREET GAINS

By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Monday, tracking  Friday’s Wall Street gains as the overall sentiment was bolstered by improving expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut in December, with many anticipating a further 25-basis-point reduction.

At 9.05 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 10.40 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 1,614.87 from last Friday’s close of 1,604.47.

The index had opened 3.79 points firmer at 1,608.26.

The broader market was positive, with 190 gainers outpacing 166 losers. Another 293 counters were unchanged, 2,040 were untraded, and 10 were suspended.

Turnover stood at 99.44 million shares worth RM74.07 million.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said that the US 10-year yield meanwhile edged higher at 4.017 per cent.

“Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index declined as traders are looking for fresh catalysts after pricing in the rate cut expectations,” he told Bernama. 

After closing below the 1,605 level last Friday, Thong believes the local bourse is set for a rebound following the decent outcome from Saturday’s election and thus expects the index to trend between the 1,605 and 1,615 today.

Among heavyweights, Tenaga Nasional and IHH Healthcare increased eight sen each to RM13.26 and RM8.34, CIMB perked up 21 sen to RM7.86, Maybank edge up four sen to RM9.95, while Public Bank was flat at RM4.35.

On the most active list, Foodie Media and Tanco inched up one sen each to 41 sen and RM1.14 respectively, UEM Edgenta gained 18.0 sen to RM1.05, Supermax eased 1.5 sen to 35.5 sen and Reservoir was flat at 20.5 sen.

Top gainers included BLD Plantation, which strengthened 70 sen to RM16.50, Hong Leong Industries added 26 sen to RM15.26, and Hong Leong Bank firmed by 24 sen to RM21.38. 

Among the top losers, Inari Amertron and Kuala Lumpur Kepong trimmed 12 sen each to RM2.07 and RM20.08 respectively, Ibraco shed seven sen to RM1.25, while Unisem and Malayan Cement gave up six sen each to RM3.18 and RM6.65, respectively.   

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index advanced 55.44 points to 11,971.41, the FBM Emas Shariah Index improved 26.26 points to 11,877.16, the FBMT 100 Index climbed 56.06 points to 11,757.03, and the FBM ACE Index was 17.66 points better at 4,842.28, but the FBM Mid 70 Index decreased 5.19 points to 16,850.89.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index jumped 161.33 points to 18,737.28, the Industrial Products and Services Index added 0.63 of-a-point to 164.66, and the Energy Index put on 2.67 points to 750.45, while the Plantation Index lost 4.29 points to 8,067.83.

-- BERNAMA