KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 1 ― Bursa Malaysia opened higher but retreated thereafter as profit-taking emerged in selected heavyweights following the recent gains, dealers said.
The benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) opened 2.05 points better at 1,603.43 from Monday’s close of 1,601.38, but retreated to 1,600.49 after 15 minutes of trading.
Market breadth was negative with losers leading gainers 262 to 233, while 374 counters were unchanged, 1,349 untraded and six others suspended.
Turnover stood at 660.88 million units worth RM310.27 million.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said with the key index notching its seventh-straight winning session, the upside may be capped as the market may digest the recent gains before more sectors start showing significant recovery, considering the recent overbought signals.
“Nevertheless, we believe the resumption of business activities should bode well for the economy as more states are moving into Phases Three and Four of the National Recovery Plan (NRP),” it said in a research note today.
It said that the FBM KLCI jumped to above the key 1,600-level on Monday amidst persistent buying interest from foreign funds in the heavyweights, in response to the positive cues from the regional markets and the Wall Street, as well as the decent progress in the vaccination rate in Malaysia.
“We expect the increasing vaccination rates should bode well for the recovery theme sectors, targeting sectors such as banking, consumer-related and building materials.
“Besides, gold counters may gain traction as the gold price continues its uptrend to move above US$1,800 (RM7,464) an ounce,” it said.
Among the market heavyweights, Maybank was flat at RM8.40, Public Bank declined 5.0 sen to RM4.13, Tenaga Nasional slipped 8.0 sen to RM10.38, IHH Healthcare fell 10 sen to RM6.30 while Petronas Chemicals rose 10 sen to RM8.40.
Of the actives, Borneo Oil and Vortex Consolidated earned half-a-sen each to 3.5 sen and 8.5 sen, respectively, Bintai Kinden added 2.5 sen to 50.5 sen, while P.A. Resources gained 3.5 sen to 44.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index shed 34.01 points to 11,593.86, the FBMT 100 Index was 37.65 points higher at 11,305.26, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index dipped 48.64 points to 12,701.82.
The FBM 70 decreased 9.49 points to 15,013.97 and the FBM ACE reduced 10.85 points to 7,234.05.
Sector-wise, the Plantation Index went down 28.12 points to 6,723.13, while the Financial Services Index gained 18.27 points to 15,575.54 and the Industrial Products and Services Index picked up 1.06 points to 199.44. ― Bernama
