Bursa Malaysia Reverses Earlier Gains To End Slightly Lower

By Abdul Hamid A Rahman

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 28 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia gave up earlier gains to end marginally lower as persistent selling pressure emerged in the afternoon session, despite the mostly higher regional market performance.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.84 of-a-point, or 0.05 per cent, to 1,587.07 from Wednesday’s close of 1,587.91.

The index opened 1.35 points higher at 1,589.26 and moved between 1,587.07 and 1,596.16 throughout the day.

On the broader market, decliners outpaced advancers 605 to 469, while 465 counters were unchanged, 1,105 untraded and 112 suspended.

Turnover narrowed to 2.92 billion units worth RM2.92 billion from 3.09 billion units worth RM2.93 billion on Wednesday.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI reversed earlier gains to close in negative territory, while key regional indices finished broadly higher following positive cue from Wall Street overnight.

“Domestically, the outlook remains positive despite today's pullback. The FBM KLCI has shown consistent resilience by staying above both its 20-day and 50-day exponential moving averages, supported by improving momentum signals.

“While short-term consolidation is possible, the prevailing trend remains upward,” he told Bernama.

 “A firm move beyond 1,600 with strong volume could unlock upside potential toward 1,620–1,650, while the 1,565–1,580 support area must hold to preserve the bullish outlook,” he added.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank added 16 sen to RM9.95, while Public Bank edged down 5.0 sen to RM4.28, CIMB Group slid 1.0 sen to RM7.45, Tenaga Nasional shed 4.0 sen to RM13.44, and IHH Healthcare was flat at RM6.79.

For the most active counters, Sime Darby garnered 5.0 sen to RM1.95, and Tanco Holdings edged up half-a-sen to 72.5 sen. Ekovest eased 1.0 sen to 37.5 sen, while Borneo Oil and Zetrix AI was flat at half-a-sen and 87 sen, respectively.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slipped 8.60 points to 11,780.64, the FBMT 100 Index shed 7.55 points to 11,553.29, the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 24.07 points to 11,747.79, the FBM 70 Index dropped 17.39 points to 16,552.20, and the FBM ACE Index decreased 4.35 points to 4,742.60.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index rose 92.88 points to 18,175.44, the Plantation Index garnered 32.50 points to 7,611.90, while the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 1.33 points to 163.21, and the Energy Index fell 2.08 points to 746.05.

The Main Market volume expanded to 1.74 billion units valued at RM2.70 billion from 1.64 billion units valued at RM2.65 billion on Wednesday.

Warrants turnover dwindled to 830.55 million units worth RM100.96 million from 1.06 billion units worth RM134.25 million previously.

The ACE Market volume dipped to 348.85 million units worth RM120.08 million from 381.21 million units worth RM153.22 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 361.72 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (364.70 million), construction (196.83 million), technology (187.46 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (87.92 million), property (192.47 million), plantation (33.14 million), REITs (20.02 million), closed/fund (29,400), energy (103.47 million), healthcare (68.39 million), telecommunications and media (40.83 million), transportation and logistics (32.66 million), utilities (49.94 million), and business trusts (91,100).

-- BERNAMA