KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 30 — Bursa Malaysia ended mixed with the local benchmark index hitting an intra-day low at the close today, driven by late profit-taking in selected telecommunication and media counters.
At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 2.50 points to 1,451.94 from 1,454.44 at yesterday’s close.
The barometer index opened 1.79 points firmer at 1,456.23 and moved slightly upwards to 1,462.80 during the day.
On the broader market, gainers and decliners were equal at 499, 423 counters unchanged, 957 untraded and 70 others suspended.
Bursa Malaysia Bhd and its subsidiaries will be closed on August 31, 2023 (tomorrow) for the National Day celebration and will resume operations on Friday, September 1, 2023.
Turnover advanced to 4.90 billion units worth RM4.75 billion against yesterday’s 4.02 billion units worth RM2.85 billion.
Axiata and CelcomDigi counters were the top two contributors towards the local benchmark index’s downtrend, losing 22 sen and five sen to RM2.36 and RM4.38, respectively.
The two counters dragged down the composite index by a combined 4.25 points.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the key regional indices trended higher following a positive cue from Wall Street overnight.
“Improved performance on Wall Street followed the release of new United States economic data, which played a role in alleviating apprehensions regarding upcoming interest rate scenarios.
“Meanwhile, in an effort directed by the state to bolster growth in the world’s second-largest economy, China’s largest banks are preparing to reduce interest rates on existing mortgages and deposits,” he told Bernama.
On the domestic front, Thong remains optimistic in the mid-term given the strong support from foreign funds, but he expects trading to be muted towards the weekend in conjunction with the National Day celebration.
Hence, he sees the FBM KLCI to likely trend within the 1,455-1,465 range.
Among the other heavyweights, Petronas Chemicals eased seven sen to RM7.12, Maxis shed six sen to RM4.01, Tenaga Nasional slipped eight sen to RM9.84, while Public Bank went up nine sen to RM4.23 and MR D.I.Y. put on six sen to RM1.55.
Of the actives, Ekovest edged up four sen to 54 sen, Iskandar Waterfront City recovered half-a-sen to 76.5 sen, Capital A was 1.5 sen higher to 97 sen, Top Glove decreased 2.5 sen to 76.5 sen, and YTL Corporation gave up seven sen to RM1.57.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index lost 7.11 points to 10,740.70, the FBMT100 Index weakened 10.50 points to 10,412.03, the FBM Emas Shariah Index was down by 33.32 points to 10,920.64, the FBM ACE Index went down 38.50 points to 5,217.97, while the FBM 70 Index improved by 16.96 points to 14,283.07.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index inched up 56.87 points to 16,385.60, the Industrial Products and Services Index was lower by 1.03 points to 171.75, the Energy Index leapt 3.28 points to 835.59, and the Plantation Index shed 11.87 points to 6,929.63.
The Main Market volume strengthened to 3.82 billion units worth RM4.48 billion from 3.05 billion units worth RM2.58 billion yesterday.
Warrant turnover improved to 419.96 million units worth RM68.55 million against 358.80 million units worth RM56.04 million previously.
The ACE Market volume widened to 641.82 million shares worth RM199.06 million from 598.89 million shares worth RM204.88 million yesterday.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 569.99 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (491.26 million); construction (469.02 million); technology (166.67 million); SPAC (nil); financial services (157.96 million); property (690.75 million); plantation (68.61 million); REITs (24.49 million), closed/fund (49,700); energy (243.33 million); healthcare (597.99 million); telecommunications and media (59.52 million); transportation and logistics (56.37 million); and utilities (220.74 million). — Bernama