KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 23 ― Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session lower due to losses in index-linked heavyweights.
At lunch break, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) stood at 1,575.40, down 2.58 points from yesterday's close of 1,577.98.
After opening 2.71 points weaker at 1,575.27, the benchmark index moved between 1,572.35 and 1,577.79 throughout the session.
Meanwhile, market breadth was negative with decliners leading gainers 473 to 225, while 338 counters remained unchanged, 949 untraded and 37 others suspended.
Turnover amounted to 1.32 billion shares worth RM848.81 million.
In a note, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said the weakness on the FBM KLCI might linger amid potential contraction as investors continue to assess the impact of Bank Negara Malaysia’s move to trim its benchmark interest rates, slumping crude oil prices and the weakness on Wall Street.
“The FBM KLCI may continue to trade in a range-bound mode with downward bias momentum as the 1,570 level will serve as the immediate support, followed by the 1,550 level. A recovery, meanwhile, is expected to be mild with gains capping at the 1,590 level.
“On the broader market, traders may continue to capitalise on the recent positive performance demonstrated by lower liners. At the same time, the healthcare sector continues to demonstrate resilience as the number of casualties from the coronavirus outbreak increases,” it added.
Of heavyweights, Maybank eased three sen to RM8.52, Public Bank added 14 sen to RM19.16, Tenaga declined 10 sen to RM12.78 and Petronas Chemicals was two sen lower at RM6.94.
The most active counter was Powerwell, which rose two sen to 30.5 sen, while MTouche was flat at 17.5 sen and Vortex eased half-a-sen to eight sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 22.68 points lower at 11,255.03 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 38.08 points to 11,975.61.
The FBMT 100 Index dropped 21.50 points to 11,039.80, the FBM 70 lost 41.69 points to 14,188.00 and the FBM Ace increased 0.91 point to 5,638.98.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.34 point to 152.52, the Financial Services Index added 1.08 points to 15,116.04 and the Plantation Index contracted 20.36 points to 7,464.37. ― Bernama
