KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 23): Bursa Malaysia opened lower on Tuesday (Aug 23), marking the fourth day of a losing streak as sentiments turned cautious again.
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However, traders anticipated bargain-hunting to emerge, in particular for banking and technology related stocks.
At 9.12am, the benchmark FBM KLCI was 5.38 points easier at 1,481.99, from Monday’s closing at 1,487.37.
The benchmark index opened 2.45 points easier at 1,484.92.
On the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 277 to 103, while 217 counters were unchanged, 1,721 untraded and seven others suspended.
Turnover stood at 179.06 million units worth RM88.93 million.
Rakuten Trade vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said buying support is expected to surface later on Tuesday, and the key index would likely trend within the 1,480-1,500 range within the day.
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“The KLCI closed broadly lower amid a weak regional performance, spooked by the weak futures on Wall Street. Wall Street slumped as concerns over a more aggressive interest rate hike [pace] by the US Federal Reserve resurfaced.
“The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 643 points, while the Nasdaq fell by 324 points, as the US 10-year yield edged higher to 3.02%,” he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, crude palm oil improved to above RM4,200/tonne, backed by improved demand.
Meanwhile, Bursa heavyweights Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) was flat at RM8.87 and Public Bank Bhd too was flat at RM4.59, while Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd was down four sen at RM8.66, and IHH Healthcare Bhd declined two sen to RM6.33.
Of the actives, Sapura Energy Bhd added one sen to five sen, Cnergenz Bhd accumulated 2.5 sen to 91 sen, Dagang NeXchange Bhd (DNeX) lost half a sen to 84 sen, and AHB Holdings Bhd was flat at 14.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index trimmed 43.56 points to 10,512.79, the FBMT 100 Index shed 41.49 points to 10,261.91, the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 60.60 points to 10,607.07, the FBM 70 lost 67.87 points to 12,565.97, and the FBM ACE went down 12.14 points to 4,842.86.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index erased 26.86 points to 16,588.27, the Plantation Index was 53.90 points lower at 7,117.73, the Energy Index slipped 1.78 points to 663.62, and the Industrial Products and Services Index lost 1.25 points to 180.42.-BERNAMA