Bursa Malaysia extends loss on caution ahead of general election
16 Nov 2022 06:05pm
Photo for illustration purposes only.
At 5 pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) dipped 2.16 points, or 0.15 per cent, to end at 1,448.38, which was also its intraday high, compared to Tuesday’s close of 1,450.54.
The market bellwether opened 3.04 points easier at 1,447.50 and hit an intraday low of 1,440.59 at the midday session.
On the broader market, decliners outpaced gainers 493 to 351, while 401 counters were unchanged, 1,080 untraded, and 13 others suspended.
Turnover eased to 2.32 billion units valued at RM1.71 billion versus 2.78 billion units valued at RM1.68 billion on Tuesday.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong told Bernama the FBM KLCI has remained downbeat due to selling pressure in selected heavyweight banking, plantation, and glove stocks.
"Looking ahead, we reckon that the fragile sentiment may continue as we approach the end of the holiday-shortened trading week ahead of GE15.
"For now, the key focus is on the outcome of GE15, while externally, investors will be keeping an eye on the US manufacturing and industrial production data," he said, adding that technically, the immediate resistance level is seen at 1,465 while support is located at 1,440.
He also attributed the weakness in the region’s stock markets to the escalating geopolitical tension after a Russian-made rocket landed and claimed two lives in eastern Poland, near Ukraine.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng reckons investors are waiting for further developments on the geopolitical front for direction on investment decisions, both globally and regionally.
"On the domestic front, we expect some bargain-hunting activities to emerge due to the current cheap valuations. Last-minute buying may happen before the market closes on the last trading day before election day. It had happened before in previous elections," he noted.
As such, he anticipates the FBM KLCI to trend within the range of 1,440-1,460 tomorrow.
On the local bourse, heavyweights Maybank gained one sen to RM8.51, Public Bank lost seven sen to RM4.30, and CIMB shed six sen to RM5.35. IHH Healthcare eased one sen to RM5.95 while Petronas Chemicals was flat at RM8.62.
Among the actives, Advance Synergy inched down by half-a-sen to 12 sen, Top Glove slipped one sen to 96 sen and Malaysia Steel Works (KL) added 9.5 sen to 36 sen. Hiap Teck Venture climbed up two sen to 26.5 sen and Tanco Holdings improved four sen to 35 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index dipped 20.71 points to 10,294.96, the FBMT 100 Index gave up 21.11 points to 10,023.86, and the FBM 70 lost 50.52 points to 12,254.05. The FBM ACE dropped 15.95 points to 4,997.17.
However, the FBM Emas Shariah Index was up by 8.84 points to 10,452.81.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index dropped 82.42 points to 16,089.31, the Energy Index slid 5.33 points to 720.10, and the Plantation Index narrowed 29.26 points to 6,902.20. The Industrial Products and Services Index rose 0.11 of-a-point to 178.77.
The Main Market volume retreated to 1.64 billion shares worth RM1.52 billion from 1.82 billion shares worth RM1.44 billion on Tuesday.
Warrant turnover declined to 317.42 million units valued at RM60.02 million from 424.43 million units valued at RM71.52 million yesterday.
The ACE Market volume was cut down to 356.42 million shares worth RM127.41 million from 538.95 million shares worth RM165.33 million previously.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 371.83 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (567.28 million); construction (44.12 million); technology (121.90 million); SPAC (nil), financial services (73.88 million); property (135.84 million); plantation (14.87 million); REITs (6.03 million), closed/fund (17,700); energy (131.50 million); healthcare (109.81 million); telecommunications and media (21.41 million); transportation and logistics (31.46 million); and utilities (12.65 million). - BERNAMA
