Bursa Malaysia Ends Flat Amid Persistent Global Volatility

By Abdul Hamid A Rahman

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia’s key index closed flat amid a mixed broader market as investors stayed on the sidelines due to ongoing global volatility.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) edged up 0.74 of-a-point, or 0.05 per cent, to 1,612.29 from Wednesday’s close of 1,611.55.

The benchmark index opened 0.16 of-a-point lower at 1,611.39 and fluctuated in a narrow range between 1,611.28 and 1,617.28 throughout the trading session.

The broader market was mixed, with 578 decliners leading 536 gainers, while 548 counters were unchanged, 1,011 untraded, and 18 suspended.

Turnover shrank to 3.49 billion units worth RM2.85 billion compared with 4.26 billion units valued at RM3.71 billion yesterday.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI ended flattish as investors remained cautious, refraining from taking long positions amid heightened global volatility.

“Volatility is expected to persist as investors await clarity from the potential meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month in South Korea, a development that could influence sentiment across both global and domestic markets.

“Given the prevailing uncertainty, we expect the benchmark index to remain rangebound within the 1,610–1,620 level towards the weekend,” he told Bernama.

Among heavyweights, Public Bank rose two sen to RM4.22, while IHH Healthcare eased three sen to RM8.04. Maybank, Tenaga Nasional and CIMB Group were flat at RM9.92, RM13.18 and RM7.34 respectively.

On the most active list, Genting Bhd added seven sen to RM3.47, Tanco Holdings gained 1.5 sen to 88 sen and Zetrix AI edged up one sen to 85.5 sen. Meanwhile, Genting Malaysia eased one sen to RM2.33 and TWL Holdings was unchanged at 2.5 sen.

Top gainers included Nestle which rose RM2.00 to RM104.70, Malaysian Pacific Industries jumped 76 sen to RM29.60, Petronas Gas rose 48 sen to RM19.00, United Plantations climbed 36 sen to RM23.60, and Frontken Corp added 22 sen to RM4.78.

Among the top decliners, Petronas Dagangan slipped 70 sen to RM22.30, PLB Engineering fell 13.5 sen to 86.5 sen, PIE Industrial declined 13 sen to RM3.13, Sunway Construction eased 12 sen to RM5.99, and Gamuda shed 10 sen to RM5.19.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index put on 14.81 points to 12,082.05, the FBMT 100 Index increased 13.97 points to 11,803.83, the FBM Emas Shariah Index advanced 19.66 points to 12,161.80, the FBM 70 Index rose 57.40 points to 17,203.55, and the FBM ACE Index was up 30.39 points to 5,375.76.

By sector, the Financial Services Index gained 27.21 points to 18,222.41 and the Plantation Index improved 14.88 points to 7,861.23, while the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 0.31 of-a-point to 173.63, and the Energy Index dipped 4.47 points to 795.56.

The Main Market volume decreased to 2.01 billion units valued at RM2.55 billion from 2.27 billion units worth RM3.32 billion yesterday.

Warrants turnover dwindled to 997.49 million units worth RM117.36 million compared with 1.45 billion units valued at RM185.30 million on Wednesday.

The ACE Market volume slid to 479.68 million units valued at RM179.84 million from 538.34 million units worth RM187.88 million previously.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 436.91 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (316.17 million), construction (74.82 million), technology (406.81 million), financial services (48.96 million), property (253.78 million), plantation (26.32 million), real estate investment trusts (29.04 million), closed-end fund (6,800), energy (163.37 million), healthcare (96.28 million), telecommunications and media (90.96 million), transportation and logistics (24.68 million), utilities (39.36 million), and business trusts (72,700).

-- BERNAMA