KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 ― Bursa Malaysia ended the morning trading session lower today, dragged down by profit-taking in selected financial services heavyweights as well as the weaker sentiment in regional markets, a dealer said.
At 12.30pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 2.49 points to 1,593.95 from 1,596.44 at yesterday's close.
The index opened 4.69 points better at 1,601.13 and moved between 1,592.62 and 1,606.38 throughout the session.
Market breadth was negative with losers leading gainers 569 to 322, while 383 counters were unchanged, 973 untraded and 18 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.82 billion units worth RM1.72 billion.
ActivTrades trader Anderson Alves said Asian equities were weak today following another risk-off day on Wall Street amidst the Russia-Ukraine war, with no significant progress being made during the recent peace talks.
“Traders could also be looking for hedges as the deterioration in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the renewed crackdown worries have left China’s equities vulnerable in recent weeks.
“The energy sector could keep outperforming as oil is trading above the US$100 mark,” he said.
Moreover, he said the market will be watching the energy prices as well as the flow of gas and oil from Russia and Ukraine which is at risk from a deliberate reduction and the potential consequences of military action on pipelines and shipping routes.
Meanwhile, Bursa heavyweights Public Bank eased three sen to RM4.39, CIMB dropped 25 sen to RM5.04, Maybank gained four sen to RM8.94, Petronas Chemicals rose 14 sen to RM9.74 and IHH Healthcare fell four sen to RM6.53.
Among the actives, SMTrack added half-a-sen to 23 sen, DNex inched up one sen to RM1.13 and Hibiscus Petroleum eased one sen to RM1.21.
On the index board, FBM ACE weakened 94 points to 5,778.35, FBM 70 dipped 31.14 points to 13,488.88, FBM Emas Index inched down 19.35 points to 11,351.49, FBMT 100 Index narrowed 19.01 points to 11,030.47, and FBM Emas Shariah Index bagged 16.74 points to 12,108.23.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index shrank 99.56 points to 16,349.11, the Industrial Products and Services Index was 1.31 points higher at 211.13, and the Plantation Index advanced 148.25 points to 8,472.07. ― Bernama
