KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3 — Bursa Malaysia opened higher today, supported by gains in financial, plantation and utilities stocks, as investors awaited Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) overnight policy rate (OPR) decision later in the day and tracked Wall Street’s positive overnight performance.

At 9.05 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 2.36 points to 1,711.10 from yesterday’s close of 1,708.74.

The benchmark index opened 2.42 points higher at 1,711.16.

Market breadth was positive, with gainers outnumbering losers 152 to 118. A total of 271 counters were unchanged, 2,231 untraded and 17 suspended.

Turnover stood at 127.56 million shares worth RM46.95 million.

BNM’s Monetary Policy Committee is scheduled to meet today to decide on the OPR, with consensus forecasts widely expecting the central bank to maintain the rate at 2.75 per cent for the remainder of 2026.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said Wall Street ended higher as bond yields eased, reducing pressure on stocks and providing some relief to investors.

“Even so, the US 10-year Treasury yield remained elevated at 4.782 per cent, attributed to higher crude oil prices, with Brent crude now trading above US$95 per barrel.

“As for the local bourse, we expect the FBM KLCI to trend within the 1,700-1,715 range today,” he said.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank was flat at RM10.60, Public Bank added two sen to RM4.95, CIMB Group gained six sen to RM7.90, Tenaga Nasional rose two sen to RM13.66, while IHH Healthcare was unchanged at RM8.08.

On the most active list, Ingenieur Gudang added half a sen to 4.5 sen, Ni Hsin and GIIB eased half a sen each to 26 sen and 50 sen, respectively, while Focus Dynamics and Key Asic were flat at half a sen and six sen, respectively.

Among the top gainers, Petronas Gas rose 18 sen to RM17.76, Hume Cement Industries and LPI Capital both added 14 sen to RM3.00 and RM13.66, respectively, Hong Leong Bank gained 12 sen to RM23.96, and Timberwell advanced eight sen to RM2.13.

Among the top losers, Malaysian Pacific Industries fell 28 sen to RM39.50, Kuala Lumpur Kepong slipped 18 sen to RM22.52, Petron Malaysia Refining declined nine sen to RM3.37, Sarawak Oil Palms eased eight sen to RM5.88, and Press Metal Aluminium shed five sen to RM7.90.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index rose 20.37 points to 12,647.20, the FBMT 100 Index gained 19.83 points to 12,455.27, the FBM Emas Shariah Index advanced 14.92 points to 12,425.27, the FBM 70 Index climbed 39.84 points to 17,824.41, and the FBM ACE Index added 13.39 points to 5,175.11.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index advanced 48.81 points to 20,127.58, the Plantation Index improved 33.11 points to 9,560.58 and the Energy Index gained 4.72 points to 806.67, while the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 0.04 of a point to 186.74. — Bernama