KUALA LUMPUR (April 4): Bursa Malaysia ended the morning trading session lower, as trading continued in a cautious mode with mild profit taking in selected heavyweights.
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At 12.30pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) was 3.9 points lower at 1,598.51 from 1,602.41 at Friday’s close.
The barometer index opened 0.38 of-a-point easier at 1,602.03, and moved between 1,594.77 and 1,602.32 throughout the morning session.
On the broader market, gainers surpassed losers 475 to 339, while 413 counters were unchanged, 1,017 untraded and 35 others suspended.
Total turnover stood at 1.87 billion worth RM991.22 million.
A dealer said Bursa Malaysia opened easier in a cautious mode, retreating from a firmer close on Friday and continued in negative territory for the whole morning session.
“Concerns over Russia’s war in Ukraine, and expectations of further US interest rate hikes continue to plague on market sentiments.
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“The local bourse bucked regional trend, which was mostly positive in the morning session today (Monday), dragged down by profit taking in selected heavyweight stocks,” he said.
Regionally, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 1.24% to 22,313.83, Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged up 0.13% to 27,702.75, South Korea’s Kospi improved 0.39% to 2,750.46, and Singapore’s Straits Times Index added 0.16% to 3,424.59.
On the local front, among the heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd slid one sen to RM8.97, Public Bank Bhd shed six sen to RM4.72, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd fell seven sen to RM9.70, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd eased three sen to RM5.30, while IHH Healthcare Bhd added five sen to RM6.30.
Of the actives, Metronic Global Bhd edged up half-a-sen to 2.5 sen, Pappajack Bhd increased 4.5 sen to 44 sen, Vortex Consolidated Bhd added two sen to 12 sen, Careplus Group Bhd gained 1.5 sen to 79 sen, and SIAB Holdings Bhd rose four sen to 26 sen.
On the index board, FBM Emas Index added 2.84 points to 11,474.49, FBM ACE advanced 17.3 points to 5,703.18, FBM 70 rose 72.96 points to 13,945.81, FBM Emas Shariah Index added 29.44 points to 12,063.29, while FBMT 100 Index slid 7.05 points to 11,142.95.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.44 of-a-point to 206.79, the Plantation Index surged 96.58 points to 8,045.34, while the Financial Services Index slipped 67.37 points to 16,841.49.-BERNAMA