KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3  — Bursa Malaysia has opened higher for the third consecutive day, tracking the overnight rally on the Wall Street due to a series of positive economic data.

On Tuesday, the United States announced that its manufacturing activity had accelerated to a nearly two-year high in August, subsequently boosting the dollar by 0.16 per cent to 92.390.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 455 points to close above the 29,000 mark.

At 9.13am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 5.67 points to 1,543.21 from Wednesday’s close of 1,537.54.

The barometre index opened 3.1 points higher at 1,540.64.

Market breadth was positive as gainers beat losers 304 to 264, while 347 counters were unchanged, 1,111 untraded and 25 others suspended.

Trading volume stood at 818.36 million shares worth RM515.97 million.

In a note, Rakuten Trade said it expected regional markets to tag the US market positively today.

"On the domestic front, we believe the FBM KLCI would potentially see more upside following the strong late buying yesterday.

"Therefore, we expect the benchmark index to trend higher today, testing the 1,550 level,” the brokerage firm said.

The FBM KLCI hovered in positive territory region for the entire trading session yesterday, with only two decliners.

The lower liners had also extended their gains, while the broader market closed mostly higher, led by the rally in the technology sector on the back of the sector’s bullish outlook.

Separately, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said that the FBM KLCI appeared to have found its footing as the key index staged a much anticipated solid recovery from near the oversold region.

It also expected the index’s recovery to extend, taking the cue from the positive strides in overseas markets as investors capitalise on the positive global economic data.

The firm projected that the technology segment would continue to lead the winners list on the back of the sector’s positive outlook.

Meanwhile, the healthcare sector, particularly pharmaceutical-related stocks, may also advance in light of the positive developments over the potential Covid-19 vaccine.

Of the heavyweights, Maybank was flat at RM7.25, Tenaga shed 22 sen to RM11.02, Public Bank slipped 10 sen to RM16.04 while Top Glove erased its losses in the past few days to climb 74 sen to RM9.43.

Among the actives, MQ Technology rose one sen to 22 sen, PA Resources also inched up one sen to 9.5 sen, Vizione added half-a-sen to 51 sen while DGB Asia was flat at 4.5 sen.

Top gainers were Top Glove which rose 74 sen to RM9.43, Malaysian Pacific Industries which improved 70 sen to RM19.20, and Supermax which was 58 sen higher at RM21.98.

Of the top losers, Dutch Lady declined 48 sen to RM39.02, Nestle lost 40 sen to RM141 and PPB declined 36 sen to RM18.62.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index increased 32.97 points to 11,207.33, the FBMT 100 Index was 35.35 points firmer at 11,001.86 and the FBM 70 appreciated 27.98 points to 14,851.44.

The FBM Emas Shariah Index bagged 67.39 points to 13,364.70, while the FBM ACE rose 36.93 points to 11,301.99.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index weakened 16.14 points to 12,679.37, the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 0.22 point to 138.92 while the Plantation Index added 3.63 points to 7,170.41. — Bernama