Bursa Malaysia Remains Lower At Midday Amid US Recession Concerns
By Siti Noor Afera Abu
KUALA LUMPUR, March 12 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia stayed lower at midday on selling pressure in selected financial services and plantation stocks, as United States (US) equities continued to face volatility due to fresh recessionary concerns.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) dropped 28.42 points, or 1.87 per cent, to 1,491.73 from Tuesday’s close of 1,520.15.
The benchmark index, which opened 15.44 points lower at 1,504.71, fluctuated between 1,490.76 and 1,505.33 during the morning trading session.
The market breadth was weak, with losers outnumbering gainers 558 to 269, while 413 counters were unchanged, 1,149 untraded, and seven suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.60 billion shares worth RM1.21 billion.
UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said the US equities slumped into negative territory amid escalating trade tensions, after President Donald Trump’s announced a 50 per cent tariff on Canadian steel and aluminium imports.
He noted that sovereign bond markets reacted with a mild upward movement in yields, with the 10-year US Treasury yield settling at 4.28 per cent, while the two-year yield briefly touched its lowest level since October 2024, pricing in expectations of two to three Federal Reserve rate cuts this year.
“Global equities followed suit, with Japanese markets under pressure due to uncertainty over potential US tariffs on autos, while European bourses declined, led by losses in travel, leisure, and healthcare sectors,” he told Bernama.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank and Sime Darby fell two sen each to RM10.22 and RM2.06, respectively, Public Bank decreased five sen to RM4.36, and Tenaga Nasional dropped 18 sen to RM13.22.
MISC and Petronas Chemicals rose one sen each to RM6.96 and RM3.63, respectively, while Press Metal was flat at RM4.91.
As for the actives, Sapura Energy and its warrants added half-a-sen each to four sen and one sen, respectively, Nationgate gained five sen to RM1.20, SFP Tech eased 1.5 sen to 24.5 sen and Bina Puri was flat at 33 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index narrowed 163.90 points to 11,103.98, the FBM 70 Index erased 82.83 points to 15,762.56, the FBM Emas Shariah Index fell 98.62 points to 10,775.39, the FBM ACE Index slipped 31.64 points to 4,408.49, and the FBMT 100 Index declined 167.55 points to 10,891.32.
By sector, the Plantation Index dipped 70.66 points to 7,270.57, the Financial Services Index tumbled 467.48 points to 18,301.80, the Industrial Products and Services Index decreased one point to 149.90, and the Energy Index reduced 9.83 points to 685.28.
-- BERNAMA
