Bursa opens marginally higher, ringgit lower against US dollar

KUALA LUMPUR – Bursa Malaysia opened marginally higher today, taking the cue from overnight Wall Street performance, which rebounded on bargain hunting after large losses incurred the previous day, dealers said.

At 9.04am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI was 0.40 of-a-point better at 1,601.19 from yesterday’s close of 1,600.79.

The barometer index opened 2.94 points better at 1,603.73.

On the broader market, losers led gainers 173 to 69, while 248 counters were unchanged, 1,746 untraded and 16 others suspended.

Total turnover stood at 162.24 million worth RM50.33 million.

The ringgit extended its downtrend against the US dollar to open lower today as the greenback strengthened amidst positive US economic data, an analyst said.

At 9am, the local note weakened to 4.2185/2220 versus the greenback from 4.2180/2210 at yesterday’s close.

According to reports, the US weekly initial jobless claims declined to 166,000 last week from 171,000 in the preceding period. – Bernama, April 8, 2022