KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 17 ― Bursa Malaysia remained in the red at midday today, in line with the performance of the regional markets, as it succumbed to selling pressure after trading sideways in the morning session.
At the lunch break, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) was 0.90 of-a-point lower at 1,521.99. It moved between 1,519.07 and 1,524.58 throughout the morning session.
The index opened 0.47 of-a-point easier at 1,522.42 from 1,522.89 at Tuesday’s close.
On the broader market, losers thumped gainers 577 to 241, while 408 counters were unchanged, 1,105 untraded and 48 others suspended.
Total volume stood at 1.50 billion units worth RM1.12 billion.
Rakuten Trade said the local market sentiment remained cautious and the lack of buying catalysts would continue to hinder the progress of the index.
“For today, we anticipate the index to trend within the 1,520-1,530 range again,” the brokerage said in a note.
Regionally, Singapore’s Straits Times Index trimmed 0.30 per cent to 3,229.23, South Korea’s Kospi shaved 1.04 per cent to 2,965.97, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index shed 0.46 per cent to 25,595.19 and Japan’s Nikkei 225 decreased 0.37 per cent to 29,698.82.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank fell one sen to RM8.08, Public Bank and IHH Healthcare rose one sen each to RM4.03 and RM6.56, respectively, and Petronas Chemicals and Tenaga were flat at RM8.31 and RM9.59, respectively.
As for the actives, Brahims erased six sen to 16 sen, KNM was flat at 17 sen, and Dagang NeXchange was one sen lower at 82 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index fell 20.95 points to 11,242.52, the FBMT 100 Index decreased 13.75 points to 10,889.03, the FBM Emas Shariah Index dipped 38.40 points to 12,228.09, the FBM ACE weakened 74.02 points to 6,784.21, and the FBM 70 was 47.15 points lower at 14,848.16.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index gained 8.97 points to 15,162.96, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 1.14 points to 198.91, and the Plantation Index climbed 25.50 points to 6,546.86. ― Bernama
