KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 — The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) and Bursa Malaysia Bhd are extending the temporary suspension of intraday short selling (IDSS) and intraday short selling by proprietary day traders (PDT Short Sale) to December 31, 2021.

Accordingly, temporary waivers related to proprietary day trading will also be extended to December 31, 2021.

The temporary suspension of IDSS and PDT Short Sale was introduced on March 24, 2020 to mitigate potential risks arising from heightened volatility and global uncertainty as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, SC and Bursa Malaysia said in a joint statement.

It was extended on February 22, 2021 and is due to expire on August 29,  2021.

The decision to extend the suspension was made after careful consideration of the various initiatives currently undertaken to strengthen the control measures for intraday short-selling activities in order to promote market stability and strengthen the integrity of the capital market.

These involve the ongoing enhancements to Bursa Malaysia’s trading system to improve the overall capacity and robustness of the Bursa Trade Securities 2 (BTS2) system, including the automated application of the "at-tick rule”.

Under this rule, IDSS and PDT Short Sale orders shall be at the prevailing best selling price or higher.

The SC and Bursa Malaysia said they will continue to monitor developments affecting the capital market and take the necessary measures to ensure a fair and orderly market as well as mitigate potential risks. — Bernama