KUALA LUMPUR, June 7 — Bursa Malaysia was lower today but closed off its intraday low, dragged down by the extended selling pressure from foreign funds outflow, said an analyst.

At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 4.52 points or 0.32 per cent to 1,378.65 from 1,383.17 at Tuesday’s close.

The key index opened 1.17 points easier at 1,382.00 this morning and moved between its intraday low of 1,371.74 and high of 1,383.55 throughout the session.

The market breadth was negative as decliners led gainers by 495 to 378, while 401 counters were unchanged, 970 untraded and 13 others suspended.

Turnover shrank to 3.12 billion units worth RM1.73 billion versus 3.55 billion units worth RM1.92 billion on Tuesday.

Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong said the sluggish trade data from China also contributed to the weakness in the local bourse.

He said China's exports shrank 7.5 per cent year-on-year to a three-month low in May 2023.

"As such, we expect the negative momentum to persist in view of the absence of fresh leads. Any recovery may attract quick profit-taking over the near term," he told Bernama.

Leong added that investors are keeping an eye on Malaysia's unemployment rate and industrial production data to be released tentatively this Friday, as well as the upcoming US Federal Reserve interest rate decision next week.

Meanwhile, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng opined that the FBM KLCI’s slide was mainly due to a lack of buying interests ahead of the state elections as investors are taking a wait-and-see approach.

"We reckon the short-term direction of the FBM KLCI will depend largely on the stability of the local political landscape and other external factors," he said.

Thong anticipates the benchmark index to trend sideways within the range of 1,375-1,385 for the remainder of the week with immediate support at 1,373 and resistance at 1,390.

Among heavyweights, CIMB added two sen to RM4.90, Tenaga Nasional eased three sen to RM9.27 and Petronas Chemicals slipped 11 sen to RM6.41, while Maybank and Public Bank were flat at RM8.58 and RM3.81, respectively.

Of the actives, Borneo Oil was flat at 1.5 sen, both Bumi Armada and Tanco shed three sen to 45.5 sen and 49 sen, respectively, ACE market debutant Edelteq gained 49 sen to 73 sen, and Sarawak Consolidated rose one sen to 27.5 sen. — Bernama