KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened marginally higher but turned lower thereafter, tracking the weaker overnight Wall Street performance.
At 9.05 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 1.28 points to 1,510.36 from Tuesday’s close of 1,511.64.
The benchmark index opened 0.25 of-a-point higher at 1,511.89.
The broader market was negative with 138 decliners outnumbering 106 gainers. Another 206 counters were unchanged, while 1,956 were untraded and 13 suspended.
Turnover stood at 82.81 million shares worth RM37.30 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said Wall Street declined amid fading optimism for a quick de-escalation of Israel-Iran tensions.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) lost 0.7 per cent, the S&P 500 slipped 0.84 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.91 per cent.
In Asia, key indices ended mixed as investors were concerned about the geopolitical tension in the Middle East.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index dipped 0.3 per cent due to profit-taking activities following Monday’s rally.
On the local front, the FBM KLCI finished lower on Tuesday as investors were reluctant to take long positions due to the heightened global uncertainties and market volatility.
“Additionally, foreign fund outflows further dampened investor sentiment.
“We foresee the benchmark index remaining range-bound between 1,500 and 1,520 today, reflecting increased market volatility,” Thong told Bernama.
Among heavyweights, Maybank, Public Bank and IHH Healthcare added 1.0 sen each to RM9.56, RM4.23 and RM6.90, respectively. Tenaga dipped 4.0 sen to RM14.26, and CIMB slid 3.0 sen to RM6.63.
Among the most active stocks, KHPT Holdings and Velesto Energy remained flat at 13.5 sen and 18.5 sen, respectively, Mpire Global eased 1.0 sen to 10 sen, Alam Maritim Resources shed half-a-sen to 3.0 sen and NexG dropped 1.5 sen to 34.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index reduced 14.46 points to 11,288.82, and the FBMT 100 Index lost 16.96 points to 11,065.58 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index slipped 2.95 points to 11,315.42.
The FBM 70 Index gave up 54.81 points to 16,168.19, but the FBM ACE Index increased 1.85 points to 4,444.82.
By sector, the Plantation Index trimmed 3.91 points to 7,246.83, while the Energy Index rose by 6.81 points to 745.58.
The Financial Services Index lost 42.65 points to 17,353.91, but the Industrial Products and Services Index increased 0.31 of-a-point to 150.46.
