KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 — Share prices on Bursa Malaysia were on a firm note at mid-morning with buying interest in Hong Leong Bank and Sime Darby group keeping the key index supported.

At 11am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) stood at 1,724.35, up 3.10 points, from last Friday’s close of 1,721.25. The key index opened 0.32 of-a-point lower at 1,720.93.

Gains in Hong Leong Bank and Sime Darby group boosted the composite index by a total contribution of 3.41 points.

Hong Leong Bank bagged 54 sen to RM16.54, Sime Darby Plantation Bhd rose 10 sen to RM5.39 and Sime Darby Bhd added one sen to RM2.19. Tenaga, meanwhile, advanced six sen to RM15.58.

Market breadth was positive with gainers outpacing decliners 337 to 261, while 298 counters were unchanged, 956 untraded and 28 others suspended.  

Turnover stood at 534.35 million shares worth RM344.47 million.

A dealer said the upbeat performance of Wall Street last Friday and positive local sentiment had attracted buyers despite a year-end consolidation mode.

“Encouraged by record-breaking closes on Wall Street, the FBM KLCI seems to have staged a technical rebound at mid-morning from a lower opening today, as buyers started to nibble at selective stocks in a market interspersed with mild profit-taking.

“Malaysia’s better trade performance has also prompted buying momentum for the local equity mart,” he added.

The US key equity index, the Dow Jones industrial average, hit a record high on Friday, rising 118 points to close at 24,329 point-level, after a strong jobs report.

Meanwhile, data released by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry last week showed that Malaysia’s total trade in October 2017 surged 19.8 per cent year-on-year to RM154.26 billion, with exports rising 18.9 per cent to RM82.41 billion.

The FBM Emas Index advanced 34.86 points to 12,380.26, the FBMT100 Index rose 34.81 points to 12,054.60 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index climbed 51.46 points to 12,842.74.

The FBM 70 surged 90.22 points to 15,200.48 and the FBM Ace bagged 4.73 points to 6,237.14.

On a sectoral basis, the Finance Index gained 40.50 points to 16,029.54, but the Industrial Index shed 1.35 points to 3,147.96 and the Plantation Index trimmed 15.60 points to 7,840.48.

Among actives, Sapura Energy added one sen to 84 sen, PUC bagged half-a-sen to 22 sen, Green Packet rose three sen to 48 sen, with Vivocom flat at 14 sen while Borneo Oil shed half-a-sen to 8.5 sen. — Bernama