Bursa Malaysia Ends Lower On Late Selling As Investors Turn Cautious

By Abdul Hamid A Rahman

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 14 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia reversed earlier gains to close lower on Tuesday, weighed down by late selling in selected heavyweight counters as investors turned cautious amid a regional downtrend.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slipped 3.73 points, or 0.23 per cent, to 1,611.46 from 1,615.19 at Monday’s close.

The benchmark index opened 2.10 points higher at 1,617.29 and moved between 1,610.05 and 1,622.75 throughout the trading session.

The broader market was negative with 811 decliners thumping 390 gainers, while 503 counters were unchanged, 955 untraded, and nine suspended.

Turnover increased to 3.66 billion units worth RM3.78 billion compared with 3.57 billion units valued at RM2.82 billion previously.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said key regional indices ended mostly lower as investors remained cautious amid lingering uncertainty over US-China trade tensions, which continued to weigh on market sentiment.

“Even though US President Donald Trump mentioned that he might still meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month at a regional summit, investors remained doubtful. Back home, the FBM KLCI reversed its earlier gains to close in the red due to late selling in selected heavyweight counters,” he told Bernama.

IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said the FBM KLCI’s late-session weakness underscored the fragile equilibrium currently shaping regional markets.

“Domestic resilience, supported by fiscal stimulus, is being offset by external uncertainties. While Budget 2026 provides a credible domestic anchor, the global backdrop, marked by inconsistent trade signals and persistent geopolitical risks, continues to restrain a sustained market recovery,” he noted.

On the local bourse, heavyweights Tenaga Nasional eased six sen to RM13.20, and CIMB Group fell 8.0 sen to RM7.35, while Maybank and Public Bank slipped 1.0 sen each to RM9.92 and RM4.21, respectively. IHH Healthcare, however, added six sen to RM8.05.

On the most active list, Tanco Holdings added one sen to 86 sen while Pharmaniaga eased 1.5 sen to 26 sen, and VS Industry declined 3.0 sen to 53 sen. NexG fell four sen to 46 sen, while Zetrix AI was unchanged at 84 sen.

Top gainers included Nestle, which rose RM2.50 to RM102.10, while Fraser & Neave advanced 44 sen to RM28.10, and Genting Malaysia jumped 18 sen to RM2.32. Genting Bhd bounced 15 sen to RM3.01, and Malayan Cement improved 14 sen to RM6.82.

Among the top decliners, Malaysian Pacific Industries slid RM1.26 to RM29.04, Petronas Gas declined 38 sen to RM18.56, and Petronas Dagangan eased 30 sen to RM22.70. PIE Industrial slumped 30 sen to RM3.23, and KESM Industries reduced 15 sen to RM3.47.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index lost 41.51 points to 12,037.03, the FBMT 100 Index fell 31.07 points to 11,768.08, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index shed 61.31 points to 12,111.48.

The FBM 70 Index erased 61.40 points to 17,023.02, and the FBM ACE Index declined 56.98 points to 5,193.43.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index shed 44.07 points to 18,177.98, the Industrial Products and Services Index went down 0.95 of a point to 173.57, the Energy Index slipped 5.33 points to 789.84, and the Plantation Index narrowed 35.74 points to 7,829.38.

The Main Market volume increased to 2.35 billion units valued at RM3.48 billion from 1.93 billion units worth RM2.49 billion previously.

Warrant turnover fell to 752.78 million units worth RM87.72 million compared with 1.12  billion units valued at RM134.92 million on Monday.

The ACE Market volume expanded to 549.25 million units valued at RM219.25 million from 516.48 million units worth RM188.52 million yesterday.

On the Main Market, consumer products and services counters accounted for 601.98 million shares traded, industrial products and services (373.70 million), construction (110.99 million), technology (350.65 million), financial services (105.94 million), property (209.96 million), plantation (48.83 million), real estate investment trusts (30.84 million), closed/fund (88,900), energy (145.19 million), healthcare (242.64 million), telecommunications and media (44.22 million), transportation and logistics (30.29 million), utilities (56.21 million), and business trusts (12,200).

-- BERNAMA