KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 4): Bursa Malaysia extended its losses to midday, ending the morning trading session lower due to sell-offs across the board amidst the weak market sentiment.
At the lunch break, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 12.83 points to 1,487.43 from Tuesday’s close of 1,500.26.
The market bellwether, which opened 2.98 points weaker at 1,497.28, fluctuated between 1,483.73 and 1,497.88 throughout the session.
A dealer said the cautious sentiment had also increased in the local bourse as Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is expected to deliver a special announcement at 12.30pm.
On the broader market, losers thumped gainers 728 versus 192, while 364 counters were unchanged, 908 untraded and nine others suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.96 billion units worth RM1.12 billion.
In a note today, Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd expects the prevailing political turmoil in Malaysia to cast a shade on the best part of trading today.
The FBM KLCI, which received strong buying support yesterday, might experience a reversal today, underpinned by the jittery sentiments, it said.
Of the heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd, Tenaga Nasional Bhd and IHH Healthcare Bhd fell five sen each to RM8, RM8, RM9.68 and RM5.72, respectively, Public Bank Bhd eased three sen to RM3.97, while CIMB Group Holdings Bhd trimmed four sen to RM4.50.
Among the actives, Advance Synergy Bhd gained two sen to 18.5 sen, Dagang NeXchange Bhd bagged 2.5 sen to 74.5 sen, Seal Incorporated Bhd perked up 3.5 sen to 42.5 sen and Saudee Group Bhd inched down half-a-sen to 10 sen, while Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd, BCM Alliance Bhd and Sanichi Technology Bhd were flat at 40.5 sen, 15 sen and 3.5 sen, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 98.03 points lower at 10,916.39, the FBMT 100 Index erased 94.6 points to 10,642.25, the FBM 70 fell 139.9 points to 14,512.89, the FBM Emas Shariah Index lost 116.02 points to 11,988.26, and the FBM ACE declined 119.79 points to 6,997.94.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index gave up 95.9 points to 14,695.76, the Plantation Index contracted 53.17 points to 6,034.92, while the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 2.03 points to 186.53.-BERNAMA