Bursa Malaysia Opens Lower Amid Cautious Sentiment

By Anas Abu Hassan

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia trended lower in early trade today, weighed down by a lack of fresh catalysts and cautious sentiment ahead of a festive-shortened trading week.  

At 9.06 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slipped 4.73 points to 1,569.00, compared to Friday’s close of 1,573.73.  

At the opening bell, the benchmark index was marginally 0.42 of-a-point lower at 1,573.31.

Market breadth was negative, with 262 decliners outpacing 73 gainers, while 244 counters were unchanged, 1,769 untraded, and 60 suspended.

Turnover stood at 161.03 million shares worth RM79.31 million.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd, equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng, said Wall Street retreated on Friday as all three major indices ended lower following a recent rally led by technology stocks.

“On the local front, the FBM KLCI continued its erratic performance, closing below the 1,575 level last week, likely weighed down by foreign selling.

“The much-anticipated Chinese New Year rally may remain elusive for now. However, Moody’s reaffirmation of Malaysia’s sovereign credit rating at ‘A3’ – an upper-medium grade with low credit risk – indicates the country remains investable,” he told Bernama.

Among heavyweights, Maybank dropped four sen to RM10.36, Public Bank was flat at RM4.33, CIMB and IHH Healthcare both fell three sen to RM7.98 and RM7.16, respectively, while Tenaga Nasional eased two sen to RM13.74.

For actives, Talam Transform and Metronic slipped half-a-sen to two sen and 1.5 sen, respectively. Oriental Kopi shed two sen to 83 sen, CBH Engineering fell one sen to 34.5 sen, and Harvest Miracle was unchanged at 18 sen.

On the broader market, the FBM Emas Index declined 47.80 points to 11,987.79, the FBMT 100 Index lost 45.79 points to 11,679.73, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index fell 50.48 points to 11,864.40.

The FBM ACE Index dropped 12.84 points to 5,197.69, while the FBM 70 Index slid 109.25 points to 17,797.10.

By sector, the Financial Services Index dipped 40.43 points to 18,856.06, the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 0.82 of-a-point to 167.87, the Plantation Index lost 11.84 points to 7,407.61, and the Energy Index shed 5.29 points to 832.77.

-- BERNAMA