Bursa slips 0.73pc at midday as investors trim positions ahead of weekend
At 12.30pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gave up 11.23 points to 1,529.09, compared to yesterday's close of 1,540.32.
The benchmark index opened 1.60 points lower at 1,538.66 and moved between 1,525.98 to 1,539.82 throughout the morning session.
Broader market sentiment was bearish, with losers edging past gainers 569 to 270, while 405 counters were unchanged, 1,282 untraded, and 44 suspended.
Turnover stood at 2.02 billion units worth RM1.09 billion.
In a research note, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd observed a developing uptrend in select sectors, particularly those linked to utilities and data centre infrastructure.
The brokerage also said investors may consider accumulating banking stocks for long-term positions, despite the recent overnight policy rate (OPR) cut, noting that the Bursa Malaysia Finance Index has retreated approximately 10 per cent from its year-to-date high.
It identified Malayan Banking Bhd, AMMB Holdings Bhd, and RHB Bank Bhd as attractive picks due to their solid dividend yields.
On the consumer front, Malacca Securities added that RM100 cash handouts and price controls on tolls and RON95 fuel are likely to boost short-term consumer spending, potentially benefiting retail-focused counters such as 99 SpeedMart, Ecoshop, and MR DIY.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank down eight sen to RM9.55, Public Bank erased three sen to RM4.28, Tenaga Nasional declined 46 sen to RM13.80, CIMB rose four sen to RM6.74, IHH Healthcare and CelcomDigi were one sen better at RM6.60 and RM3.84, respectively.
As for the actives, NexG and Velesto added one sen each to 52.5 sen and 19 sen, respectively. Lotte Chemical eased half a sen to 70 sen, while Zetrix and Focus Dynamics were flat at 91.5 sen and one sen, respectively.
Across the broader market, the FBM Emas Index dropped 68.58 points to 11,482.59, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 69.61 points to 11,244.95, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 79.25 points to 11,244.95.
The FBM 70 Index eased 46.06 points to 16,612.81, while the FBM ACE Index shed 18.58 points to 4,623.93.
By sector, the Financial Services Index fell 58.67 points to 17,446.91, the Plantation Index lost 54.85 points to 7,415.11, and the Industrial Products and Services Index was 1.32 points lower at 156.84. The Energy Index, however, rose 3.05 points to 741.73. — Bernama
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At 5pm, the FBM KLCI fell 5.56 points, or 0.36%, to close at 1,523.82 from yesterday's close of 1,529.38. The benchmark index opened 0.20 of-a-point firmer at 1,529.58 and subsequently hit its highest level of 1,537.62 in early trade before trending downward for the rest of the day. In the broader market, losers led gainers 603 to 365, while 506 counters were unchanged, 1,047 untraded and 44 suspended. Turnover improved to 3.36 billion units worth RM2.18 billion from 3 billion shares worth RM2.3 billion yesterday. Heavyweights Maybank lost two sen to RM9.52, Public Bank and Tenaga Nasional fell four sen each to RM4.21 and RM13.32, respectively, CIMB slipped 11 sen to RM6.64, and IHH Healthcare decreased six sen to RM6.60. Among the most active stocks, ACE debutant Oxford Innotech gained 9.5 sen to 38.5 sen, Zetrix AI climbed one sen to 84.5 sen, NexG was flat at 53 sen, while Focus Dynamics eased 0.5 sen to 0.5 sen and Ekovest shed 3.5 sen to 40.5 sen. Among top gainers and decliners, Allianz Malaysia added 40 sen to RM17.70, Petronas Dagangan advanced 26 sen to RM21.70, and Petronas Chemicals garnered 18 sen to RM3.79. Top losers were Panasonic Manufacturing, which slid 36 sen to RM10.52, while Kuala Lumpur Kepong trimmed 28 sen to RM19.52. Across the broader market, the FBM Emas Index dropped 32.07 points to 11,440.13, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 30.92 points to 11,201.53, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index lost 11.95 points to 11,478.09. The FBM 70 Index eased 2.20 points to 16,528.21 and the FBM ACE Index fell 9.98 points to 4,626.62. By sector, the industrial products and services index inched up 1.99 points to 159.38, the energy index edged up 2.93 points to 743.72, while the financial services index tumbled 99.03 points to 17,309.34, and the plantation index sank 68.20 points to 7,395.03. The Main Market volume declined to 1.48 billion units valued at RM1.87 billion from 1.67 billion units valued at RM2.03 billion yesterday. Warrants turnover climbed to 1.1 billion units worth RM183.9 million from 1.01 billion units worth RM161.01 million previously. The ACE Market volume surged to 772.91 million units worth RM121.4 million from 323.13 million units worth RM106.95 million yesterday. Consumer products and services counters accounted for 213.86 million shares traded on the Main Market; industrial products and services (240.5 million), construction (165.43 million), technology (252.46 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (69.21 million), property (156.13 million), plantation (12.33 million), REITs (28.54 million), closed-end fund (1,000), energy (95.71 million), healthcare (134.24 million), telecommunications and media (30.26 million), transportation and logistics (44.63 million), utilities (40.6 million), and business trusts (242,800).
