Bursa Malaysia Kicks Off Higher, Mirrors Wall Street Gains

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia opened slightly higher on Tuesday, rebounding from yesterday’s decline as investors tracked an overnight rally on Wall Street.

At 9.07 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 2.09 points, or 0.13 per cent, to 1,558.23 from Monday’s close of 1,556.14.

The benchmark index had opened 0.78 of-a-point higher at 1,556.92.

Market breadth was positive, with 256 gainers outpacing 101 decliners. A total of 202 counters were unchanged, 1,850 untraded, and 17 suspended.

Turnover stood at 123.18 million shares valued at RM58.98 million.  

Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB), in a note, said it expects the FBM KLCI to trend sideways during the ongoing corporate results season, amid a tariff-driven global economic slowdown that could weigh on domestic activity and earnings.

“This cautious outlook will likely persist until a permanent and mutually beneficial trade deal is reached between the United States and key trading partners, including Malaysia,” the investment bank said.

HLIB added that lingering policy uncertainty from the Trump administration and unclear signals on the Federal Reserve’s rate path would continue to pressure market sentiment and business confidence.

Among heavyweights, CIMB and Petronas Gas added 2.0 sen each to RM7.12 and RM17.60, respectively. Public Bank and Press Metal were unchanged at RM4.49 and RM4.96, while Maybank, Tenaga Nasional and IHH Healthcare slipped 2.0 sen each to RM10.12, RM14.08 and RM6.97.

In active trade, SFP Tech and NexG edged up half-a-sen each to 23.5 sen and 38.0 sen, NationGate climbed 3.0 sen to RM1.64, Dagang Nexchange added 1.0 sen to 31.0 sen, while Straits Energy and Magma remained flat at 9.0 sen and 41.5 sen. Permaju Industries and ACE Market debutant PEOPLElogy eased half-a-sen each to 3.0 sen and 24.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index gained 36.11 points to 11,629.45, the FBMT 100 Index added 32.61 points to 11,383.43, and the FBM ACE Index firmed 13.31 points to 4,660.25.

The FBM Emas Shariah Index rose 48.29 points to 11,536.28, while the FBM 70 Index advanced 116.50 points to 16,502.21.

Across sectors, the Financial Services Index added 4.06 points to 18,363.06, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.47 of-a-point to 158.97, the Energy Index gained 7.39 points to 714.89, while the Plantation Index fell 1.66 points to 7,324.43.

-- BERNAMA