Bursa ends flat amid cautious sentiment
At 5pm, the FBM KLCI erased 1.27 points to end at 1,524.59 from last Friday's close of 1,525.86.
The benchmark index was 0.60 of a point better at 1,526.86 at the opening bell and moved between 1,520.02 and 1,526.46 throughout the trading session.
The market breadth was negative, with 607 losers overtaking 342 gainers and 504 counters unchanged, while 1,014 were untraded and seven suspended.
Turnover improved to 3.5 billion shares worth RM2.68bil from 3.18 billion shares worth RM2.81bil last Friday.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said upbeat sentiment was seen across Asia, however, selling pressure continued to persist across emerging markets.
'We believe investor funds are rotating into Hong Kong and Chinese equities. Locally, ongoing foreign and retail selling reflects a cautious wait-and-see sentiment. Nonetheless, the FBM KLCI is well supported above the 1,520 level.
'We reckon the selldown offers an opportunity to bargain hunt stocks at lower levels, hence we expect the index to trend within the 1,510 to 1,540 level for the week,' he added.
UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Mohd Sedek Jantan opined that investors are assessing news of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission probe, launched last Thursday in connection with alleged corruption involving a data centre project tender.
'The impact of the investigation appears confined to selected counters, with no sign of broader market contagion.
'This was underscored by the market performance where stocks linked to data centres, telecommunications and industrials ranked among the leading gainers, indicating that investor sentiment towards these sectors remains fundamentally resilient,' he added.
Mohd Sedek also said that investors are expected to adopt a selective stance, reassessing exposures within the data centre and technology sectors rather than engaging in broad-based selling.
Of the heavyweight stocks, Malayan Banking Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Bhd were flat at RM9.52 and RM13.78, Public Bank Bhd was one sen lower at RM4.30, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd rose one sen to RM6.52 and IHH Healthcare Bhd advanced six sen to RM6.63.
Among the most active stocks, Sunway Construction Group Bhd was 49 sen lower at RM5.49, NexG Bhd gained one sen to 50.5 sen, Pharmaniaga Bhd advanced 6.5 sen to 22 sen while Tanco Holdings Bhd lost half-a-sen to 90.5 sen.
The ringgit extended its gains against the US dollar at yesterday's close, as the greenback struggled to appreciate amid political uncertainties in Japan, said an analyst.
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