Bursa Malaysia lower at midday on renewed US-China tensions
KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia was lower at midday, dragged down by renewed tensions between the United States (US) and China, analysts said.
According to reports, China hit back at US President Donald Trump's claim it had violated the temporary trade agreement between the two countries, while the European Union said it opposed the president's doubling of tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) declined by 4.89 points, 0.32 per cent, to 1,503.46 from last Friday's close of 1,508.35.
The benchmark index, which opened 4.37 points higher at 1,512.72, moved between 1,497.42 and 1,514.12 during the morning session.
In the broader market, decliners thumped gainers 694 to 225, while 373 counters were unchanged, 1,054 untraded and 15 suspended.
Turnover stood at 2.14 billion units worth RM1.14 billion.
Meanwhile, Hong Leong Investment Bank said in a note that following the conclusion of a lacklustre May corporate results season, it expects the benchmark index to remain volatile in June after tumbling 2.1 per cent in May (year-to-date: -8.2 per cent).
This is as investor sentiment has stayed cautious amid continued foreign net outflows coupled with developments in the political landscape ahead of the Sabah state election (due by end 2025).
"Adding to the cautious tone are renewed concerns over a tariff-driven global slowdown and ongoing legal tussles surrounding Trump's trade policies, which could weigh on market confidence and pressure Malaysia's growth and earnings outlook,' it said.
Among the heavyweights, QL Resources fell 11 sen to RM4.39, Axiata slid four sen to RM2.01, Press Metal Aluminium was down nine sen to RM4.95, Petronas Chemicals eased six sen to RM3.36, and Sunway dropped 7 sen to RM4.68.
Among the most active counters, Harvest Miracle Capital, ACE Market debutant ICT Zone Asia, and Permaju Industries were flat at 18 sen, 20 sen and 1.5 sen respectively, while Tanco Holdings increased one sen to RM1.01 and Eco-Shop Marketing slipped two sen to RM1.24.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index shaved 44.22 points to 11,255.58, the FBMT 100 Index lost 38.95 points to 11,022.05, and the FBM ACE Index fell 65.44 points to 4,485.59.
The FBM Emas Shariah Index slid 54.38 points to 11,201.88, while the FBM 70 Index trimmed 69.27 points to 16,132.23.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index weakened 43.21 points to 17,797.32, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 2.05 points to 150.60, and the Energy Index eased 8.58 points to 699.46, but the Plantation Index rose 16.80 points to 7,224.65. - Bernama
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Hundreds of Venezuelans deported to El Salvador have right to challenge detention, judge rules
FILE PHOTO: U.S. military personnel escort an alleged gang member who was deported by the U.S. along with others the U.S. alleges are members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and the MS-13 gang to be imprisoned in the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) prison, at the El Salvador International Airport in San Luis Talpa, El Salvador April 12, 2025. Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo NEW YORK (Reuters) -Hundreds of Venezuelans deported from the United States to El Salvador under an 18th century wartime law must be given the chance to challenge their detentions, and the Trump administration must facilitate the legal challenges, a U.S. judge ruled on Wednesday. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg gave the Trump administration one week to detail how it would facilitate the deportees' filing of legal challenges. His ruling stopped short of expressly ordering the Trump administration to bring the hundreds of Venezuelan migrants currently being held in a mega-prison in El Salvador back to the United States. In his ruling, Boasberg wrote that the individuals were deported without adequate notice or the right to contest their removals. 'That process - which was improperly withheld - must now be afforded to them,' Boasberg wrote. The Venezuelans were deported in March after President Donald Trump, a Republican, invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to swiftly deport alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang without going through normal immigration procedures. Boasberg's Wednesday ruling is the first to address the fate of these detainees. Neither the White House nor the Justice Department immediately responded to requests for comment. Family members of many of the Venezuelans deported on March 15 and their lawyers deny any gang ties, and say they were not given a chance to contest the Trump administration's allegations in court. The U.S. Supreme Court in April held that migrants must be allowed to challenge their removals under the Alien Enemies Act. Courts around the country have since barred the Trump administration from further deportations of alleged Tren de Aragua members under the law. But those rulings only applied to Venezuelans still in the U.S. facing possible deportation under the law. (Reporting by Luc Cohen; editing by Ryan Patrick Jones, Noeleen Walder and Deepa Babington)
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Manila's debt hits fresh high in April as govt borrowings rise
Since the beginning of the year, the country's debt has risen by 4.37% or 701.37 billion peso. — Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA: The latest data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) show state liabilities inched up by 0.41% or 68.89 billion peso (US$1.2bil) on a month-on-month basis. Since the beginning of the year, the country's debt has risen by 4.37% or 701.37 billion peso. While the government had to incur more borrowings in April to plug its budget deficit, the BTr said a rallying peso helped minimise the growth of obligations. The local currency has been gaining ground in the past weeks as US President Donald Trump's erratic trade policies bruise confidence in the US dollar. 'The government continues to follow a disciplined debt strategy, ensuring that borrowings support productive investments while keeping fiscal sustainability,' the bureau said. Broken down, domestic obligations, which accounted for 69.2% of the total debt load, went up by 1.85% to 11.59 trillion peso in April. The BTr said the increase was driven by robust demand for government securities, including the 300 billion peso benchmark bonds that the state offered during the month. The local currency's appreciation also reduced the peso equivalent of US dollar-denominated domestic securities by 3.85 billion peso. Meanwhile, external borrowings declined by 2.68% to 5.16 trillion peso because of the 124.74 billion peso decrease in the peso-value of foreign debt. — Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Canadian bill seeks to deny hearings to some asylum-seekers
FILE PHOTO: A group of asylum seekers claiming to be from Haiti take their luggage out of a taxi as they arrive near a checkpoint on Roxham Road near Hemmingford, Quebec, Canada April 24, 2022. Picture taken April 24, 2022. REUTERS/Christinne Muschi/File Photo TORONTO (Reuters) -A Canadian border-security bill introduced by the Liberal government earlier this week may deny some asylum-seekers a refugee hearing and make it easier for the government to revoke migrants' status. The bill comes as the government seeks to address U.S. concerns about its border security and reduce the number of migrants in the addition to denying some refugee hearings and allowing the suspension, cancellation or variance of immigration documents, the bill facilitates sharing people's information and makes it easier to read people's mail, among other measures. President Donald Trump has said Canada had failed to do enough to stem the flow of illicit fentanyl into the U.S., using that as justification for some of his tariffs. This week Trump doubled the tariffs in place on steel and aluminum, prompting calls for Canada to boost retaliatory measures of its own. Late last year Canada pledged C$1.3 billion to beef up its border. As Canada reduces the number of new permanent and temporary residents, its refugee system faces a historic backlog of more than 280,000 cases. This week's bill follows through on some of those border promises as well as on suggestions from some top ministers that Canada would fast-track refusals for some refugee claims. If the bill passes, asylum-seekers who have been in Canada more than one year would not be eligible for refugee hearings. Instead, they would have access to a pre-removal risk assessment, meant to determine whether they would be in danger in their country of origin. According to data published by Canada's Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Department, 30% of pre-removal risk assessments in 2019 for people deemed ineligible for refugee hearings were approved; by contrast, according to Immigration and Refugee Board data, that year 60% of finalized refugee hearings were approved. Asylum-seekers who wait two weeks to file claims after crossing from the U.S. to avoid being turned back under a bilateral agreement would also not get hearings. The bill, which needs to go through multiple readings before the House of Commons votes on it and sends it to the Senate, would also allow the government to "cancel, suspend or vary" immigration documents if deemed in the public interest. Migrant and refugee advocates worry the changes could leave vulnerable people deported to dangerous situations in their home countries without adequate due process. A spokesperson for Canada's Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab said on Wednesday that the government recognizes the conditions in people's home countries may change, but the pre-removal risk assessment will prevent them from being returned to persecution or torture. "The asylum ineligibilities introduced yesterday seek to maintain protection for those fleeing danger while discouraging misuse that bypasses the asylum system's function – which is to protect the vulnerable," the spokesperson wrote in an email. "Canada is reneging on its basic human rights obligations to do individual arbitration," said Migrant Rights Network spokesperson Syed Hussan. "This is teeing up a deportation machine." (Reporting by Anna Mehler Paperny; editing by Diane Craft)
