KUALA LUMPUR, June 13 — Bursa Malaysia extended its downtrend from last week’s losses to open lower on Monday, tracking weaker performance on Wall Street after the United States (US) posted higher inflation data, a dealer said.
At 9.10am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 14.78 points to 1,479.17 from Friday’s close of 1,493.95.
The benchmark index opened 10.19 points lower at 1,483.76.
On the broader market, losers thumped gainers 496 to 55, while 204 counters were unchanged, 1,519 untraded and 21 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 251.27 million units worth RM128.14 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said Wall Street fell sharply due to May’s inflation figure, which jumped to a 40-year high of 8.6 per cent, igniting fears of more intense rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
On the home front, he said the FBM KLCI continued its downtrend at opening amid the regional weak performances.
“Though a rebound is expected, we reckon the market undertone to remain jittery, thus, anticipating the index to hover within the 1,480-1,500 range today,” he told Bernama.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank eased 12 sen to RM8.63, Public Bank lost seven sen to RM4.46, Petronas Chemicals inched down six sen to RM9.64, while IHH Healthcare stayed flat at RM6.45.
Of the actives, Sapura energy added half-a-sen to five sen, MLABS decreased half-a-sen to three sen, Dagang NeXchange slipped two sen to 97.5 sen, while G3 and Ta Win stayed flat at 4.5 sen and three sen, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 116.41 points lower at 10,617.24, the FBM Emas Shariah Index slipped 104.07 points to 10.893.17, the FBM 70 declined 164.45 points to 12,949.13, the FBM ACE trimmed 83.70 points to 5,050.66, and the FBMT 100 Index decreased 109.71 points at 10,319.64.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index dropped 185.36 points to 16,234.77, the Plantation Index shed 50.78 points to 7,545.87, and the Industrial Products and Services Index was 1.98 points easier at 191.35. — Bernama
