FBM KLCI ends higher, investors eye upcoming GDP release
However, dealers noted that cautiousness lingered ahead of key economic events, including the Statistics Department's upcoming release of advance GDP data for the second quarter on Friday and the looming tariff deadline.
The FBM KLCI rose 9.44 points, or 0.62% to 1,520.94 after hitting an intraday high of 1,521.15.
There were 547 gainers, 416 losers and 475 counters traded unchanged on the Bursa Malaysia. Turnover stood at 3.17 billion shares valued at RM2.5bil.
Among the gainers, F&N rose 36 sen to RM29.02, Hong Leong Bank added 32 sen to RM19.30, Paragon gained 19 sen to RM2.87 and PETRONAS Chemicals climbed 13 sen to RM3.32.
Malaysian Pacific Industries , the top loser on Bursa Malaysia, slid 38 sen to RM19.62. Kuala Lumpur Kepong lost 30 sen to RM20.16, Aeon Credit fell 17 sen to RM5.16 and Panasonic Manufacturing eased 14 sen to RM11.
ACE Market debutant iCents Group jumped 41.67%, or 10 sen, to 34 sen, with 150.54 million shares traded.
Stock market data showed foreign investors net sold RM173mil on Wednesday, while local institutions and retailers were net buyers at RM1mil and RM172mil, respectively.
On the forex market, the ringgit was quoted at 4.2493 against the greenback, down 0.11%.
It rose 0.02% against the euro to 4.9287, but fell 0.11% against the pound to 5.6941 and edged down 0.03% against the Singapore dollar to 3.3046.
On the external front, Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 0.6% to close at 39,901.19, while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.19% to end at 3,192.29.
In contrast, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slipped 0.08% to 24,498.95.
Meanwhile, Singapore's Straits Times Index advanced 0.71% to 4,161.43. In China, the CSI300 Index gained 0.68% to 4,034.49, and the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.4% to finish at 3,516.83.
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