KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened lower today as profit-taking emerged following a decent run-up in previous sessions.
At 9:04 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased by 2.45 points to 1,724.94 from last Friday’s close of 1,727.39.
The benchmark index opened 0.45 of a point higher at 1,726.94.
However, market breadth was positive, with gainers outpacing losers 149 to 133, while 348 counters were unchanged, 2,215 untraded, and 27 suspended.
Turnover stood at 135.93 million shares valued at RM60.92 million.
In a note today, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd said traders are now in a dilemma over whether to rejoice in weak July retail sales data or the prospect of the US Federal Reserve lowering interest rates, as both illustrate diminishing consumer confidence.
“We also noticed market undertone has turned cautious. Hence, expect the index to veer within the 1,725-1,735 range today,” it said.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank and Public Bank were flat at RM10.60 and RM5.13, respectively, while IHH Healthcare gained four sen to RM8.24, but CIMB Group declined 10 sen to RM7.85, and Tenaga Nasional slid six sen to RM14.42.
On the most active list, JAKS Resources added one sen to 11.5 sen, Oppstar, ES Sunlogy and 3REN were 1.5 sen higher each to 75 sen, 41.5 sen and 45 sen, respectively. Meanwhile, YGL Convergence gained half a sen to 13.5 sen.
Among top gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries rose by 10 sen to RM47.60, MISC gained eight sen to RM8.18, PETRONAS Chemicals Group increased five sen to RM4.55, UWC and Frontken both firmed by four sen to RM6.74 and RM5.29, respectively.
As for the top losers, PETRONAS Gas lost 12 sen to RM17.30, and Riverview Rubber Estates slipped 11 sen to RM2.97. APM Automotive Holdings, RHB and Stratus Global Holdings were five sen lower to RM2.76, RM8.60 and RM2.85, respectively.
Among the broader indices, the FBM ACE Index advanced 9.17 points to 5,303.95, and the FBM 70 Index increased by 36.82 points to 18,330.01.
The FBM Emas Syariah Index went up 10.71 points to 12,639.94, but the FBM Emas Index fell by 6.87 points to 12,808.57, and the FBMT 100 Index slid 6.91 points to 12,619.35.
By sector, the Plantation Index climbed 10.97 points to 9,338.38, and the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up 0.41points to 187.64.
However, the Energy Index fell 2.17 points to 777.29, and the Financial Services Index lost 59.33 points to 20,276.70. – BERNAMA
