Profit-taking Pressures Bursa Malaysia Into Afternoon Decline

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia's downward trend persisted into mid-afternoon, driven by ongoing profit-taking in select heavyweights, especially in the utilities sector.

YTL Corp dropped 17 sen to RM2.49, while YTL Power International fell 11 sen to RM3.78, contributing to a 4.74-point decline in the composite index.

At 3 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) had decreased by 5.80 points to 1,667.58, down from Wednesday’s close of 1,673.38. 

The benchmark index opened 3.19 points lower at 1,670.19.

On the broader market, decliners outnumbered advancers by 580 to 391, with 482 counters remaining unchanged, 1,063 untraded, and 51 suspended. 

Turnover stood at 2.06 billion units, valued at RM1.47 billion.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank declined by six sen to RM10.64, CIMB Group eased by one sen to RM8.27, and Tenaga Nasional dropped four sen to RM14.98.

Conversely, IHH Healthcare rose by three sen to RM7.17, and Public Bank increased by two sen to RM4.65.

In active counters, Sarawak Cable climbed four sen to 14.5 sen, Artroniq inched up two sen to 10 sen, MY E.G. Services fell one sen to 89 sen, and OCR Group remained flat at 5.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slid 47.42 points to 12,436.62, the FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 45.19 points to 12,320.91, the FBMT 100 Index fell by 49.31 points to 12,135.19, and the FBM 70 Index dipped 97.58 points to 17,478.19. 

However, the FBM ACE Index grew by 9.58 points to 5,141.26.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index tumbled 11.45 points to 19,632.36, the Plantation Index declined by 50.24 points to 7,202.70, the Energy Index fell by 7.29 points to 863.40, and the Industrial Products and Services Index eased by 1.42 points to 176.27.

-- BERNAMA