KUALA LUMPUR, April 10 — Bursa Malaysia opened slightly higher on Friday, taking cues from positive overnight Wall Street performance, ahead of the United States (US)-Iran ceasefire talks in Pakistan this weekend.
At 9.06am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 2.85 points, or 0.16 per cent, to 1,689.09, from Thursday’s close of 1,686.24.
The benchmark index opened 5.23 points higher at 1,691.47.
Market breadth was positive, with 200 gainers outpacing 100 decliners. A total of 233 counters were unchanged, 2,175 untraded, and 13 suspended.
Turnover stood at 117.46 million shares worth RM60.42 million.
In a note today, Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) said the FBM KLCI is likely to remain choppy ahead of the US-Iran weekend talks, with sentiment staying headline-driven and hinging on developments around the Strait of Hormuz, particularly its reopening and stability.
The investment bank said geopolitical risks remained elevated amid ongoing Iran-Israel tensions and ceasefire violations, raising doubts over the peace talks.
“Any escalation or breakdown could swiftly reverse recent gains. Major support is seen at 1,650-1,664, while resistance is pegged at 1,705–1,730,” HLIB said in a note today.
Among heavyweights, Maybank advanced four sen to RM11.16, Public Bank gained one sen to RM4.60, CIMB increased five sen to RM7.45, Tenaga Nasional was flat at RM14.12, and IHH Healthcare declined eight sen to RM8.83.
On the most active list, Bumi Armada and Pegasus rose half-a-sen each to 37.5 sen and half-a-sen, respectively, Jiankun went up one sen to 5.5 sen, TWL was flat at 2.5 sen, and Velesto declined half-a-sen to 35 sen.
Among top gainers, Hong Leong Financial Group strengthened by 26 sen to RM18.76, Atlan and Hong Leong Bank firmed 10 sen each to RM2.60 and RM22, respectively, while MI Technovation appreciated seven sen to RM2.92.
Top losers included Nestle, which fell RM1.14 to RM100.10, Petronas Dagangan trimmed 52 sen to RM21.40, QL Resources slid 11 sen to RM3.98 and Sarawak Oil Palms slipped 10 sen to RM4.62.
On the index board, the FBM Top 100 Index climbed 23.06 points to 12,233.62, the FBM Emas Index rose 25.67 points to 12,384.55, the FBM Mid 70 Index went up 42.98 points to 17,241.33, the FBM Emas Shariah Index perked 14.95 points to 12,273.09, and the FBM ACE Index put on 28.32 points to 4,403.16.
By sector, the Financial Services Index rose by 82.20 points to 19,759.47, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 0.08 point to 184.40, the Energy Index slipped 0.68 point to 813.06, and the Plantation Index declined 1.76 points to 8,988.34. — Bernama
