BURSA MALAYSIA EXTENDS LOSS ON LACK OF CATALYSTS

By Harizah Hanim Mohamed

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia extended its losing streak to seven consecutive trading sessions on Tuesday due to a lack of catalysts, diverging from the regional trend where markets finished mostly higher.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) erased 4.28 points, or 0.27 per cent, to 1,585.38 from Monday's close of 1,589.66. The benchmark index opened 0.50 of a point weaker at 1,589.71 and moved between 1,582.35 and 1,594.71 throughout the session. 

The market breadth was negative with decliners trouncing gainers 838 to 316, with 442 counters unchanged, 822 untraded and 16 others suspended.

Turnover went up to 5.23 billion units worth RM3.70 billion from yesterday's 5.01 billion units worth RM3.78 billion.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI was stuck in consolidation mode again as investor sentiment remained cautious due to the lack of buying catalysts.

“As for regional indices, they finished mostly higher due to bargain-hunting activities. The market in  Hong Kong regained stability after three days of sharp losses as Chinese and European ministers commenced dialogue on import tariffs for Chinese electric vehicles.

“On the domestic front, the FBM KLCI remained in a sideways pattern despite a few attempts to break out of the ‘black candle’,” he told Bernama, referring to the candlestick chart.

Nonetheless, Thong said the index is expected to see a slight upside due to prevailing low valuations and expects it to hover within the 1,580 to 1,600 range for the remainder of the week.

At the point of writing, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.72 per cent to 39,084.85, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 0.45 per cent to 18,109.20 and Singapore's Strait Times Index was 0.28 per cent better at 3,323.35. South Korea's Kospi improved 0.51 per cent to 2,778.87.

UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan said the key index extended its consolidation today as investors continued to recalibrate following significant developments such as the slide in NVIDIA stock as well as Malaysia’s diesel subsidy rationalisation plan, the country’s latest inflation reading and a resumption in foreign selling on the local bourse. 

“We remain cautiously optimistic that after a brief consolidation, the KLCI will revisit the 1,600 to 1,610 levels. This view is supported by the Leading Index (LI) released this afternoon, which showed Malaysia's LI rose 4.3 per cent in April 2024, marking the fifth consecutive month of increase, and proactive policies aimed at attracting higher value-added foreign direct investments,” he added.

Of the heavyweight counters, Maybank added three sen to RM9.91, TNB jumped 28 sen to RM14 but Public Bank dropped three sen to RM4, IHH Healthcare erased two sen to RM6.28 while CIMB Group was flat at RM6.68.

Among the most active counters, Ingenieur Gudang was flat at 6.5 sen, JCY International lost eight sen to 69.5 sen, YGL Convergence added six sen to 24.5 sen while SNS Network went down 7.5 sen to 72 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slipped 35.67 points to 12,158.37, the FBMT 100 Index fell 21.94 points to 11,749.68 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 19.23 points to 12,525.91. The FBM 70 Index shed 2.93 points to 17,719.44, and the FBM ACE Index retreated 92.88 points to 5,621.13.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index shed 0.89 points to 17,353.52, the Plantation Index inched down 16.40 points to 7,008.12, but the Energy Index rose 1.39 points to 953.53. 

The Industrial Products and Services Index declined 2.31 points to 196.14.

The Main Market volume declined to 2.65 billion units valued at RM3.17 billion from 2.83 billion units valued at RM3.31 billion yesterday. 

Warrant turnover expanded to 1.58 billion units worth RM204.44 million compared with 1.25 billion units worth RM160.70 million previously. 

The ACE Market volume chalked up to 993.15 million shares valued at RM321.7 million against 918.10 million shares worth RM305.71 million on Monday. 

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 362.12 million shares traded on the Main Market; industrial products and services (734.38 million), construction (228.1 million); technology (438.67 million); SPAC (nil); financial services (98.13 million); property (300.33 million), plantation (20.26 million), REITs (11.04 million), closed/fund (116,100), energy (187.81 million); healthcare (59.63 million); telecommunications and media (43.76 million); transportation and logistics (61.31 million); utilities (107.54 million); and business trusts (183,300).

-- BERNAMA