Bursa Malaysia Ends Lower In Muted Trading Ahead Of CNY

By Anas Abu Hassan

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia finished in the negative territory today dampened by subdued trading observed across the board ahead of the upcoming Chinese New Year (CNY) festive holidays, said an analyst.

At 5 pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slipped 14.76 points, or 0.94 per cent, to end at its intraday low of 1,558.97 compared to Friday’s close of 1,573.73.

The benchmark index opened marginally lower by 0.42 of-a-point at its intraday high of 1,573.31 and moved in a downtrend path towards closing.

Market breadth was negative with decliners thumping gainers 782 to 235, with 415 counters unchanged, 916 untraded and 60 suspended.

Turnover narrowed to 2.76 billion units valued at RM2.38 billion compared to 3.0 billion units valued at RM3.06 billion registered last Friday.

UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan noted that the thin trading volume today indicated a clear retreat by investors as they await stronger market catalysts.  

The FBM KLCI exhibited a mixed performance with banking stocks outperformed, signalling a rotation into value-oriented sectors as investors reposition their portfolios amid a challenging macroeconomic backdrop.

"Conversely, continued selling pressure in utilities stocks highlights ongoing scepticism towards defensive plays, particularly those deemed overvalued in the current interest rate environment.  

"Looking ahead, we expect market activity to remain muted this week, as investors likely adopt a cautious stance in anticipation of the upcoming Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting scheduled for January 28-29," he told Bernama.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank slid four sen to RM10.36, and Tenaga Nasional fell 32 sen to RM13.44, while CIMB gained two sen to RM8.03, Public Bank rose five sen to RM4.38, and IHH Healthcare added four sen to RM7.23.

For the actives, YTL Corp slid 19 sen to RM1.93, MYEG eased 2.5 sen to 93.5 sen, YTL Power tumbled 39 sen to RM3.22, CBH Engineering slipped three sen to 32.5 sen, and Gamuda dropped 13 sen to RM4.06.

On the broader market, the FBM Emas Index plummeted 138.25 points to 11,897.34, the FBMT 100 Index fell 129.25 points to 11,596.27, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 185.09 points to 11,729.79.

The FBM ACE Index dipped 93.12 points to 5,117.41 and the FBM 70 Index tumbled 269.09 points to 17,637.26.

By sector, the Financial Services Index rose 33.07 points to 18,929.56, but the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 3.23 points to 165.46, the Plantation Index declined 105.91 points to 7,313.54, and the Energy Index shed 13.76 points to 824.30.

The Main Market volume trimmed to 1.31 billion units worth RM2.08 billion from 1.36 billion units worth RM2.72 billion on Friday.

Warrants turnover dwindled to 954.50 million units valued at RM88.82 million versus 1.10 billion units valued at RM108.61 million previously.

The ACE Market volume decreased to 495.71 million units worth RM202.23 million compared to 538.96 million units worth RM228.46 million last Friday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 148.81 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (255.14 million), construction (121.38 million), technology (201.48 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (37.24 million), property (177.60 million), plantation (19.50 million), REITs (10.74 million), closed/fund (39,900), energy (104.81 million), healthcare (44.91 million), telecommunications and media (14.39 million), transportation and logistics (19.45 million), utilities (149.81 million), and business trusts (15,100).

-- BERNAMA