Bursa Malaysia bucks regional trend to end lower, sans fresh local leads

KUALA LUMPUR — Bursa Malaysia bucked the regional trend to settle lower on Thursday, as selling pressure in selected banking heavyweights dampened sentiment, in the absence of fresh domestic catalysts coupled with an unexciting batch of corporate earnings releases, said an analyst.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slipped 4.50 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 1,518.98 from Wednesday’s close of 1,523.48.

The benchmark index opened 2.12 points higher at 1,525.60 and fluctuated between 1,518.38 and 1,526.94 throughout the day.

In the broader market, decliners beat gainers 478 to 466, while 460 counters were unchanged, 982 untraded and 110 suspended.

Turnover expanded to 3.30 billion units worth RM2.22 billion compared with Wednesday’s 2.50 billion units worth RM2.03 billion.

Apex Securities Bhd head of research Kenneth Leong expects that the key index may attempt to find stability above the 1,500 level on the back of potential bargain hunting, going forward.

“Still, we believe that any potential gains could be capped by the resumption of foreign funds outflow.

“Looking ahead, investors will be keeping a close watch on the second reading of the US first-quarter 2025 gross domestic product data to be released later tonight,” he told Bernama.

Domestically, Leong said the key focus remains on the ongoing corporate earnings releases.

Meanwhile, UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said the release of the latest US Federal Reserve (Fed) minutes proved pivotal.

“The Fed’s reaffirmation of its cautious stance—highlighting persistent inflationary pressures and resilient US macroeconomic data—has effectively tempered market expectations for a near-term rate cut.”

“This recalibration in rate outlook translated into upward pressure on global yields, a dynamic to which Malaysia’s banking-heavy benchmark index remains acutely sensitive,” he told Bernama.

Mohd Sedek said the uplift in regional equities was underpinned by a US federal court’s decision to block President Donald Trump’s proposed “Liberation Day” tariffs, which materially improved global risk appetite. However, domestic sentiment remained subdued, weighed down by profit-taking in heavyweight banking counters.

Among heavyweights, Maybank gained three sen to RM9.87 and CIMB increased one sen to RM6.88. Public Bank and Tenaga Nasional fell two sen each to RM4.31 and RM14.08 respectively, while IHH Healthcare was flat at RM6.91.

As for active stocks, Permaju inched down half-a-sen to one sen and Nationgate dropped 14 sen to RM1.44, while Velesto and NexG added one sen each to 18.5 sen and 37.5 sen respectively. MYEG was flat at 89 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slid 14.84 points to 11,382.33, the FBM ACE Index rose 42.82 points to 4,592.16, but the FBMT 100 Index fell 19.34 points to 11,142.02.

The FBM Emas Shariah Index lost 9.68 points to 11,365.83 while the FBM 70 Index perked up 25.65 points to 16,332.31.

By sector, the Financial Services Index slipped 64.33 points to 17,893.57, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.32 of-a-point to 153.02, the Energy Index put on 1.67 points to 708.18, while the Plantation Index added 1.40 points to 7,293.95.

The Main Market volume improved to 1.56 billion units valued at RM1.93 billion against Wednesday’s 1.34 billion units valued at RM1.80 billion.

Warrants turnover swelled to 1.37 billion units worth RM164.04 million from 815.91 million units worth RM113.60 million previously.

The ACE Market volume advanced to 364.60 million shares worth RM120.88 million from 346.43 million shares worth RM119.44 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 354.51 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (317.02 million), construction (98.30 million), technology (235.43 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (70.33 million), property (170.33 million), plantation (14.93 million), REITs (88.90 million), closed/fund (2,700), energy (150.03 million), healthcare (36.24 million), telecommunications and media (56.54 million), transportation and logistics (15.65 million), utilities (34.86 million), and business trusts (23,400). — BERNAMA