KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 — Bursa Malaysia turned mixed at mid-morning as lower liners and small-cap stocks took a breather after recent gains.

However, glove makers remained attractive for investors in the morning trading.

At 11.06am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 4.04 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 1,613.98 from 1,609.94 at yesterday's close.

The key index opened 0.19 of-a-point firmer at 1,610.13 at 9 am.

Market breadth turned negative with losers outnumbering gainers 500 to 359, while 423 counters were unchanged, 715 untraded and 56 others suspended.

Trading volume stood at 4.80 billion shares worth RM2.60 billion.

In a note today, Maybank Investment Bank Bhd said healthcare and technology sectors remained investors and traders’ favourite, while momentum in consumer counters could pick up ahead.

“Technically, we expect the FBM KLCI to continue to range between 1,550 and 1,620 today, with downside supports at 1,550 and 1,515,” it said.

Glove counters continued to lead gains in heavyweights, with Hartalega rising 58 sen to RM20.48 while Top Glove advanced 54 sen to RM26.94.

Maxis increased five sen to RM5.32, Axiata perked up three sen to RM3.25 while PPB was 18 sen firmer at RM19.26.

Of the most actives, XOX retreated 2.5 sen to 25.5 sen, Key Alliance was unchanged at 10 sen, K-One gained six sen to 48.5 sen, Bioalpha edged up 1.5 sen to 30.5 sen, and MQ Technology ticked up half-a-sen to 13.5 sen.

Apart from Hartalega and Top Glove, top gainers included Kossan which surged RM1.42 to RM18.72, Rubberex climbed 54 sen to RM5.13, Nestle which bagged 90 sen to RM140.70 and MPI was 42 sen higher at RM12.72.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index advanced 30.53 points to 11,497.03, the FBMT 100 Index perked up 31.61 points to 11,334.37 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index was 69.22 points firmer at 13,517.41.

The FBM 70 rose 53.55 points to 14,632.43, FBM ACE was 5.07 points higher at 8,481.65 but the FBM SCAP slid 0.45 of-a — point to 13,184.87.

Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index put on 0.17 of-a-point to 141.64 but the Financial Services Index declined 13.37 points to 13,351.09 and the Plantation Index erased 13.22 points to 7,171.14. — Bernama