KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened lower as the weaker overnight performance on Wall Street dampened buying sentiment in the local market.
At 9.15 am, the key FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) lost 4.17 points to 1,646.39 from yesterday’s close of 1,650.56.
The index opened 5.24 points lower at 1,645.32.
In a note, Public Interest Research said the FBM KLCI opened lower after another bruising session across global markets, which saw stocks, oil prices and the dollar come under renewed pressure and the Treasury yield curve flatten further as participants remained unsettled by the Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday.
“The mood was not helped by persistent concerns over the threat of a US government shutdown this weekend,” it added.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell 1.6 per cent, the Nasdaq ended 1.6 per cent lower and the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined two per cent.
On the broader market on Bursa Malaysia, there were 188 losers and 58 gainers, with 138 counters unchanged, 1,523 untraded and 44 others suspended.
Volume stood at 149.55 million units valued at RM57.95 million.
Among heavyweights, Maybank eased seven sen to RM9.23, Public Bank lost 10 sen to RM24.56, Petronas Chemicals was flat at RM9.21 and Tenaga rose six sen to RM12.88.
Among actives, Hubline, Bumi Armada and Vivocom were all unchanged at four sen, 15 sen and two sen respectively.
The FBM Emas Index decreased 31.56 points to 11,231.77, the FBMT 100 Index fell 28.13 points to 11,153.23, the FBM Emas Shariah Index lost 17.94 points to 11,108.55, the FBM Ace Index was 11.98 points lower at 4,179.68 and the FBM 70 shed 32 points to 12,773.49.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index was 0.44 point weaker at 164.97, the Financial Services Index dropped 62.82 points to 17,072.49 and the Plantation Index added 9.18 points to 6,600.17.
Gold futures contracts on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives were unchanged in the early session on lack of interest.
At 9.45 am, December 2018, January 2019, February 2019 and March 2019 were pegged at RM167.50, RM167.50, RM167.60 and RM167.70 per gramme respectively.
Volume was nil, while open interest amounted to 26 contracts.
At 9.30 am, the price of physical gold was up RM1.43 at RM163.89 per gramme. — Bernama
