Bursa Stays Buoyant At Midday On China Optimism, Wall Street Hopes
The benchmark FBMKLCI climbed 5.82 points to 1,517.32 as of 12.30 pm, supported by buying interest in selected blue chips. It traded between a low of 1,511.64 and a high of 1,519.50 throughout the morning session.
Broad market indices also showed modest gains. The FBM70 rose 30.62 points to 16,552.01, while the broader FBMEMAS gained 36.79 points to 11,407.82. The FBM Shariah Index added 46.14 points to 11,450.09.
The market's firm footing came as investors responded to China's recent move to inject more liquidity into its banking system, raising hopes of stabilisation in its property and manufacturing sectors. Regionally, Asian markets were largely higher, with Tokyo and Hong Kong posting gains.
Back home, trading activity remained brisk. Among the most active stocks were ICENTS, the debutant, at 33.5 sen (+9.5 sen) on surging volume of 127.6 million shares, followed by NexG climbing 0.5 sen to 49 sen, and Lotte Chemical Titan rising 6.5 sen to 57 sen as oil-linked counters saw renewed interest.
Zetrix and Tanco also featured in the most active list, although Zetrix slipped one sen to 94 sen despite active trading.
The market tone was underpinned by cautious optimism ahead of key US earnings reports and a string of economic data due later this week. Traders remain watchful of US Fed commentary and potential rate shifts amid ongoing inflationary concerns. Related
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