.JPG "An investor monitors the stock prices in the gallery of the RHB Investment Bank Bhd headquarters in Kuala Lumpur March 17, 2020. u00e2u20acu2022 Picture by Hari Anggara")
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 27 — Bursa Malaysia opened marginally higher on Monday, supported by buying interest, given fading Omicron fears, a dealer said.
At 9.08am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) earned 0.67 of-a-point to 1,517.12 from 1,516.45 on Friday.
The index opened 0.92 of-a-point higher at 1,517.37.
On the broader market, gainers led losers 105 to 86, while 205 counters were unchanged, 1,914 untraded and 14 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 76.04 million units valued at RM31.29 million.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd, in a research note, said buying support is expected to continue for at least a week as fears on the Omicron variant subsided and investors are expected to pick up recovery-theme counters within the aviation, gaming and tourism industries.
“We think traders should focus on recovery-theme stocks, as well as companies with solid earning visibility such as the technology sector. Also, the thematic theme may surround the furniture and timber-related stocks on the back of the recent flood situations,” it added.
The firm said the benchmark index ended the week flat amid softer trading activities, in line with mixed performances across regional markets.
“The lower liners and broader market, however, trended higher, led by the energy sector on the back of firmer crude oil prices,” it said.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank slipped three sen to RM8.22, while PBBank, PChem, IHH, and CIMB were all flat at RM4.12, RM8.77, RM6.57 and RM5.36, respectively.
Of the actives, MGRC added seven sen to RM1.13, while Focus warrant, KAB and SMTrack were unchanged at one sen, 26 sen and 13.5 sen, respectively, and Eduspec lost half-a-sen to 1.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 6.17 points higher at 11,001.68, the FBMT 100 Index went up 5.13 points to 10,706.84, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased 11.72 points to 11,814.40.
The FBM 70 rose 8.43 points to 14,011.84 and the FBM ACE gained 10.45 points to 6,250.57.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up 0.14 of-a-point to 197.68, the Plantation Index rose 0.79 of-a-point to 6,489.30, while the Financial Services Index fell 1.73 points to 15,420.89. — Bernama
