KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22 — Bursa Malaysia turns mixed at mid-morning due to profit-taking activities as fresh weakness across the globe clouded the local stock market.
At 11.10am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 2.70 points to 1,590.03 from yesterday’s close of 1,587.33, after opening 2.69 points weaker at 1,584.64.
Market breadth was negative with losers leading gainers 386 to 294, while 350 counters remained unchanged, 956 untraded and 38 others suspended.
Turnover amounted to 1.45 billion shares worth RM838.32 million.
In a note, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said profit-taking activities were evident among the lower liners and broader market shares as traders look to book their recent profits ahead of the extended Lunar New Year break.
“The fresh weakness across the globe emanated from the International Monetary Fund’s move to trim global economic growth prediction for the year, while the coronavirus outbreak may pose a challenge to the global economic growth.
“The FBM KLCI looks to drift lower, potentially towards the 1,570 level, and should that level fail to hold, the next support is located at 1,550. Any gains arising from bargain-hunting activities may be capped with upsides limited towards the 1,615 level,” it added.
Among the top gainers were glove manufacturers Kossan Rubber, Top Glove and Hartalega, due to reports of the coronavirus outbreak in China.
Kossan Rubber rose 35 sen to RM4.82, Top Glove gained 29 sen to RM5.40 and Hartalega was 28 sen higher at RM6.08.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank and Tenaga were flat at RM8.60 and RM12.88, while Public Bank rose two sen to RM19.50 and Petronas Chemicals increased one sen to RM7.
The most active counter was ACE Market debutant, Powerwell Holdings Bhd, which rose three sen to 28 sen, with 206.43 million shares traded.
Other actively traded stocks were Vortex and Xidelang, which gained half-a-sen each to 9.5 sen and 16.5 sen, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index went up 9.40 points to 11,343.52 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased 23.14 points to 12,022.83.
The FBMT 100 Index rose 20.68 points to 11,127.14, the FBM 70 gained 33.64 points to 14,238.10 and the FBM Ace was 28.74 points lower at 5,606.35.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.22 of-a-point to 153.06, the Financial Services Index gained 9.54 points to 15,334.93 and the Plantation Index was 37.70 points weaker at 7,482.06. — Bernama
