KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 – Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Friday after pausing the previous day, tracking global gains as investors grew more confident that the United States (US) Federal Reserve (Fed) will cut rates next week.
Markets are pricing in a rate cut after US jobless claims climbed to their highest level in nearly four years, lifting sentiment on the local bourse, dealers said.
At 9.06 am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 2.86 points to 1,585.71 from Thursday’s close of 1,582.85.
The index had opened 5.19 points higher at 1,588.04.
Market breadth was positive, with 222 gainers outpacing 91 losers. Another 224 counters were unchanged, 2,085 untraded and 11 suspended. Turnover stood at 120.33 million shares worth RM64.91 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI took a breather on Thursday, slipping towards the 1,580 level after a bright start to the week.
“Hopefully we will see an immediate rebound as the local bourse remains one of the underperformers in the region. However, in view of another extended long weekend, we expect the index to just hover between the 1,575 and 1,585 range today,” he said.
Among heavyweights, Maybank eased one sen to RM9.76, Public Bank was flat at RM4.22, CIMB Group rose two sen to RM7.26, Tenaga Nasional gained six sen to RM13.28, and IHH Healthcare was unchanged at RM7.15.
In active trade, TWL Holdings was flat at three sen, Pharmaniaga added half-a-sen to 25 sen, Classita Holdings slipped half-a-sen to nine sen, and Bermaz Auto shed four sen to RM3.63.5.
Malaysian Pacific Industries led gainers, rising 36 sen to RM28.58. Hong Leong Bank advanced 16 sen to RM20.30, Country View added 13 sen to RM2.27, and United Plantations climbed 12 sen to RM22.60.
Nestle was the top loser, falling 40 sen to RM95.10. Hong Leong Industries eased 12 sen to RM13.66, Kelington Group warrants dropped five sen to RM3.85, and Coastal Contracts slipped five sen to RM1.13.
Across the broader market, the FBM Emas Shariah Index rose 39.15 points to 11,815.12, the FBM 70 Index added 91.79 points to 16,560.53, the FBM Emas Index gained 29.52 points to 11,784.56, the FBMT 100 Index advanced 31.43 points to 11,547.23, and the FBM ACE Index edged up 7.92 points to 4,757.63.
By sector, the Industrial Products and Services Index improved 0.66 of-a-point to 164.99, the Plantation Index added 4.53 points to 7,690.09, and the Energy Index gained 2.45 points to 739.98, while the Financial Services Index slipped 5.07 points to 17,948.19.
