KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 23 — Bursa Malaysia stayed in the red at mid-morning as market sentiment was weakened by concerns over the coronavirus outbreak, which triggered fresh volatility on the equities market.
At 11.15am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 4.29 points to 1,570.15 from yesterday’s close of 1,574.44, after opening 0.84 point weaker at 1,573.60.
Market breadth was negative with losers leading gainers 414 to 225, while 324 counters remained unchanged, 1,009 untraded and 24 others suspended.
Turnover amounted to 1.13 billion shares worth RM791.32 million.
In a note, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said the outbreak triggered volatility on the global equities market as investors became concerned over the economic impact on the second largest economy, China.
Furthermore, it said investors were also taking the aforementioned event as an excuse to lock in their gains ahead of the extended weekend break in major Asia countries.
“The lack of leads, coupled with a shortened trading session ahead of the Lunar New Year, is likely to see stocks on Bursa Malaysia on a drifting mode.
“Under the prevailing environment, the FBM KLCI is expected to remain at the 1,560 level, which is now serving as the immediate support, followed by the 1,550 level. Any bargain hunting activities may keep gains in check with the immediate hurdle at the 1,585 level,” it added.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank added two sen to RM8.53, Public Bank rose four sen to RM19.18, while Tenaga lost two sen to RM12.62 and Petronas Chemicals was seven sen lower at RM6.86.
Of the actives, Impiana Hotels and EA Holdings were flat at 2.5 sen and 1.5 sen, while DGB Asia added half-a-sen to 13.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index went down 28.41 points to 11,228.41 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 51.22 points to 11,932.09.
The FBMT 100 Index fell 26.18 points to 11,016.28, the FBM 70 was 17.84 points lower at 14,212.25 and the FBM Ace increased 41.16 points to 5,665.52.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.85 point to 151.63, the Financial Services Index gained 17.31 points to 15,116.12 and the Plantation Index was 33.05 points weaker at 7,420.72. — Bernama
