KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 — Bursa Malaysia opened broadly lower today, in tandem with its regional peers as heightened Covid-19 cases weighed on sentiment.
At 9.05am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) erased 5.66 points to 1,494.6 from Tuesday’s close of 1,500.26.
The index opened 2.98 points weaker at 1,497.28.
The overall market breadth was negative with decliners hammering gainers 391 versus 63, while 201 counters were unchanged, 1,537 untraded and nine others suspended.
Turnover stood at 231.23 million units worth RM96.51 million.
A dealer said Asian stocks tumbled on worries over the Delta variant’s rapid spread, killing hopes for economic recoveries.
Meanwhile, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said the entry of two more states and a federal territory — Perlis, Sarawak and Labuan — into Phase Three of the National Recovery Plan starting today, coupled with the earnings season, might lift market sentiment.
It expects buying interest should emerge within the technology counters for this session.
“We expect the rebound in solar and plastic manufacturing sectors may persist over the near-term.
“Technical indicators turned slightly positive… however, investors may continue to trade in a cautious mode, with support (for FBM KLCI) set at 1,480, while the resistance is located at 1,520 if the key index stays above 1,500,” it said in a note.
Of the heavyweights, Maybank and Tenaga trimmed four sen each to RM8.01 and RM9.69, respectively, Public Bank eased two sen to RM3.98, IHH lost five sen to RM5.72, CIMB shed three sen to RM4.51, while Petronas Chemicals was flat at RM8.06.
Among the actives, Advance gained 1.5 sen to 18 sen, Alam Maritim was flat at 6.5 sen, PUC slipped one sen to 17.5 sen, while MAG inched up half-a-sen to 19 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 48.28 points lower at 10,976.13, the FBMT 100 Index decreased 46.85 points to 10,689.99, the FBM ACE fell 78.64 points to 7,039.09, the FBM 70 erased 88.48 points to 14,564.31, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 48.86 points to 12,055.42.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index gave up 54.85 points for 14,736.81, the Plantation Index slid 14.25 points to 6,073.84 and the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 0.76 of-a-point to 187.8. — Bernama
