Bursa reverses gains, ringgit opens lower against greenback

KUALA LUMPUR – Bursa Malaysia reversed from its gains yesterday to trade lower in the early session due to profit-taking, taking its cue from weaker Wall Street performance overnight, an analyst said.

At 9.05am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI dropped 3.30 points to 1,421.89 from yesterday’s close of 1,425.19.

The barometer index opened 3.22 points weaker at 1,421.97.

The market breadth was negative with decliners leading gainers 182 to 91, while 209 counters were unchanged, 1,812 untraded and 25 others suspended.

Turnover stood at 122.41 million units valued at RM59.86 million.

The ringgit opened lower against the US dollar today, weighed down by a stronger greenback on renewed interest for safe haven currencies, an analyst said.

At 9am, the local note stood at 4.4600/4670 versus the greenback from yesterday’s closing rate of 4.4480/4520.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid noted that there is a risk-off mode in the market as US banks’ earnings were disappointing during the first quarter of 2023 while US consumers were feeling pessimistic in April. – Bernama, April 26, 2023