KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 — Share prices on Bursa Malaysia opened broadly lower today amid a lack of fresh leads.
At 9.32am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) was down 12.72 points to 1,614.04 from Friday’s close of 1,626.76.
The FBM KLCI opened 5.64 points weaker at 1,621.12.
There were 339 losers and 104 gainers, while 236 counters were unchanged, 1,208 untraded and 18 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 394.73 million units worth RM133.47 million.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said sentiment on the stock market was still looking frail, amid an escalation in the US-China trade war, that is also set to prolong the already dour global trend.
“It also appears that the trade dispute is likely to remain long drawn and keep market sentiment in check for longer,” it said in a note today, adding, lower liners and broader market shares were also undergoing a consolidation spell that looked to continue over the near-term.
“Just like the index-linked shares, we see shares also succumbing to increased selling activities as equity sentiment is turning weaker, and this could keep more retail players on the sidelines,” it added.
Among top losers on Bursa, Fraser & Neave lost 44 sen to RM34.06, Kuala Lumpur Kepong dropped 38 sen to RM23.38, Petronas Dagangan slid 34 sen to RM23.32 and Hong Leong Back trimmed 14 sen to RM17.60.
For the heavyweight counters, Maybank shed four sen to RM8.61, Public Bank slipped 14 sen to RM21.64, TNB shed eight sen to RM13.78, while Petronas Chemicals and IHH Healthcare both eased six sen to RM7.37 and RM5.67 respectively.
For the most active stocks, Sealink gained 1.5 sen to 25 sen, Ekovest edged up half-a-sen to 84 sen, Priceworth International and Eduspec were flat at 6.5 sen and 4.5 sen respectively, while KNM and London Biscuits declined one sen each to 38.5 sen and 14 sen.
The FBM Emas Index fell 81.83 points to 11,434.96, the FBM Ace slid 20.36 points to 4,668.98, the FBM 70 went down 84.72 points to 14,271.5, the FBMT 100 Index contracted 83.61 points to 11,261.39, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index depreciated 94.88 points to 11,831.64.
Sector-wise, the Plantation Index declined 64.92 points to 6,624.25, the Financial Services Index gave up 72.64 points for 15,892.23 and the Industrial Products and Services Index declined 0.95 point to 153.27. — Bernama
