KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 11 ― Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session higher today, in tandem with regional peers taking the cue from overnight Wall Street, which ended mostly higher.
Hopes of an agreement between President Donald Trump and the Senate over the latest Covid-19 stimulus package helped lift the sentiment.
At 12.30pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) increased 4.16 points to 1,575.82 from yesterday's close of 1,571.66.
The key index opened 8.51 points higher at 1,580.17 and moved between 1,572.25 and 1,581.93 throughout the morning session.
Market breadth was positive, with gainers leading losers 581 to 514, while 349 counters were unchanged, 534 untraded and 21 others suspended.
Trading volume stood at 16.73 billion shares worth RM4.42 billion.
Regionally, China's Shanghai Stock Exchange gained 0.33 per cent to 3,390.37, while Japan’s Nikkei Index rose 1.80 per cent to 22,732.89, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index surged 2.40 per cent 24,962.48, and Singapore's Straits Times Index added 0.22 per cent to 2,551.08.
AxiCorp chief global market strategist Stephen Innes said Asia stocks have opened mostly higher on a de-escalation of trade talk risk premium and on the hope that a heftier US stimulus package will be offered up soon, and growth assets like oil are finding some comfort with the first favourable bend lower in the US Covid case curve in some time.
On the local front, a dealer said the market was traded higher for the whole morning session with buying in the healthcare sector particularly glove maker stocks continuing to support the barometer index.
Trading volume also remained high on persistent buying support by retail investors, which would provide support on rotational play among FBM ACE-related stocks, she added.
Of the heavyweights, Maybank gained six sen to RM7.58, Top Glove rose 50 sen to RM27.70, Public Bank increased 10 sen to RM16.90, Hartalega advanced 26 sen to RM18.62 and Tenaga bagged four sen to RM11.06.
Of the most active, Sapura Energy was 7.5 better at 17.5 sen, Netx Holdings edged up half-a-sen to 2.5 sen, AT Systematization added two sen to 14 sen, Velesto improved three sen to 17.5 sen while Trive Property eased half-a-sen to 2.5 sen.
The top gainers are Supermax, Top Glove and G3 Global.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index increased 75.15 points to 11,359.71, the FBM Emas Shariah Index was 93.52 points higher at 13,446.60 and the FBMT 100 Index expanded 70.37 points to 11,166.57.
The FBM 70 advanced 253.12 points to 14,810.65.42 and the FBM ACE climbed 355.72 points to 10,970.85.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index was up 29.29 points at 12,996.74, the Plantation Index shed 10.83 points to 7,030.62 and the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 0.06 point to 140.97. ― Bernama
