BURSA MALAYSIA OPENS LOWER, MIRRORING WALL STREET

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened lower today, mirroring Wall Street's weaker performance overnight as traders await the release of the United States' (US) consumer price index (CPI) data for November later today, which may influence the US Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates next week.

At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 5.84 points to 1,603.13 from yesterday’s close of 1,608.97. 

The index opened 5.78 points lower at 1,603.19.

Market breadth was negative, with losers outpacing gainers 220 to 126, while 310 counters were unchanged, 1,821 untraded, and 21 suspended.

Turnover amounted to 175.25 million units valued at RM112.22 million.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng attributed Wall Street's performance to the US Treasury 10-year yield, which edged higher to 4.228 per cent, weighing on market sentiment. 

"Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index ended lower. It opened on a high at above the 21,000 level, but the uptrend was short-lived as traders decided to lock in profits following the recent mini-rally," he told Bernama.

Back home, Thong expects the benchmark FBM KLCI to chart further upside, noting that the recent conclusion of the earnings season showed that corporate Malaysia is still in good health.

"Hence, the index is expected to hover within the 1,605-1,615 range today," he added. 

Among the heavyweights, Tenaga Nasional added 4.0 sen to RM13.72 and Public Bank eased 1.0 sen to RM4.51, while CIMB and IHH Healthcare decreased 4.0 sen each to RM8.07 and RM7.40, respectively, and Maybank was flat at RM10.10. 

As for the active stocks, Dagang NeXchange rose 3.0 sen to 38.5 sen, SNS Network Technology perked up 2.0 sen to 59 sen, Skyworld Development gained 5.0 sen to 67.5 sen and Microlink Solutions went up 1.0 sen to 19.5 sen, while Handal Energy inched down half-a-sen to 6.0 sen. 

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index declined 34.47 points to 12,305.58, the FBMT 100 Index erased 37.33 points to 11,985.98, the FBM 70 Index shrank 34.47 points to 18,459.33 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index shed 38.03 points to 12,318.54, while the FBM ACE Index increased by 18.95 points to 5,305.76.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index slipped 47.08 points to 19,055.36, the Plantation Index trimmed 31.72 points to 7,693.44 and the Industrial Products and Services Index lost 1.04 points to 175.17, while the Energy Index expanded 0.29 points to 822.36.

-- BERNAMA