Bursa Malaysia Ends Lower On Profit-taking, Tracking Regional Weakness

By Abdul Hamid A Rahman

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia snapped a three-day winning streak to close at an intraday low today, as investors engaged in profit-taking after recent strong gains, in tandem with the downbeat performance in regional markets.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 20.86 points, or 1.30 per cent, to close at 1,581.59 from Monday’s close of 1,602.45.

The benchmark index opened 0.45 of-a-point higher at 1,602.90, and subsequently hit an intraday high of 1,604.52 in early trade.

On the broader market, decliners beat advancers 635 to 407, while 495 counters were unchanged, 1,091 untraded and 21 suspended. 

Turnover surged to 4.30 billion units worth RM6.46 billion from 2.90 billion units worth RM3.17 billion on Monday.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said key regional indices also ended lower as investors lock in profits ahead of a speech by a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) member later today on the direction of US interest rate.

“On the domestic front, we remain positive on the local market, as today’s profit-taking was anticipated and is viewed as a healthy correction to digest the recent uptrend. We anticipate a short term consolidation before the index resumes its uptrend,” told Bernama.

Meanwhile, UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said that the overall market sentiment remains constructive.

“Domestically, policy visibility has improved following the announcement of the 13th Malaysia Plan last month, with additional fiscal measures expected in Budget 2026 this October.

“Together, these developments reinforce a positive outlook for Malaysia’s equity market, where resilient mid-cap performance, supported by construction and energy, alongside solid trade momentum, point to a broadening of investment opportunities beyond the benchmark index,” he said.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank and CIMB slipped 10 sen to RM9.75 and RM7.40, respectively, Public Bank shed 9.0 sen to RM4.42, Tenaga Nasional dropped 28 sen to RM13.44, and IHH Healthcare eased 2.0 sen to RM6.77.

For the most active counters, Sime Darby shed 4.0 sen to RM1.62, Genting Bhd slid 8.0 sen RM2.80, PPB Group fell 58 sen to RM8.23, while Magma Group added 9.0 sen to 30.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index declined 135.79 points to 11,734.27, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 142.57 points to 11,506.22, the FBM Emas Shariah Index dipped 123.47 points to 11,677.28, the FBM 70 Index slumped 163.31 points to 16,453.17, and the FBM ACE Index sank 8.82 points to 4,751.65.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index dropped 215.79 points to 18,089.49, the Industrial Products and Services Index went down 0.47 of-a-point to 163.62, and the Plantation Index tumbled 64.97 points to 7,574.13, while the Energy Index improved 1.44 points to 747.20.

The Main Market volume rose to 2.56 billion units valued at RM6.11 billion from 1.76 billion units valued at RM2.93 billion on Monday.

Warrants turnover soared to 1.27 billion units worth RM174.86 million from 652.92 million units worth RM88.90 million previously.

The ACE Market volume decreased to 480.86 million units worth RM171.52 million from 494.35 million units worth RM145.00 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 940.70 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (312.46 million), construction (163.22 million), technology (266.63 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (261.35 million), property (156.82 million), plantation (27.70 million), REITs (33.12 million), closed/fund (351,200), energy (119.97 million), healthcare (80.25 million), telecommunications and media (46.63 million), transportation and logistics (25.72 million), utilities (123.34 million), and business trusts (142,000).

-- BERNAMA