KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 28): Bursa Malaysia opened lower on Thursday as cautious sentiments prevailed ahead of the tabling of Budget 2022 on Friday.
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At 9.05am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 2.67 points to 1,580.41 from Wednesday’s close of 1,583.08. It opened 2.0 points weaker at 1,581.08.
On the broader market, losers outpaced gainers 258 to 141, while 264 counters were unchanged, 1,628 untraded and 58 others suspended.
Turnover amounted to 188.13 million units worth RM92.56 million.
In a research note, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said the FBM KLCI moved a tad lower in tandem with regional peers, as investors were jittery due to concerns over China’s property market, resurfacing US-China tensions, as well as inflation.
However, the brokerage believed that on the local front, trading interest is focusing on Budget 2022 themes and buying support from foreign investors.
“We expect Redtone [Digital Bhd]’s news on the telco may spur buying support into telco-related stocks, while construction and property sectors may be rebounding prior to Budget 2022.
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“Commodity-wise, both the crude palm oil (CPO) and crude oil prices declined, while gold had rebounded,” it said.
Malacca Securities said recovery theme sectors such as property, consumer, banking and aviation are likely to gain traction in line with the resumption of economic activities a few weeks ago.
“Meanwhile, we think metal-related counters may be undergoing a pullback formation due to lower steel prices,” it added.
Among the heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd gained two sen to RM8.15, Public Bank Bhd added one sen to RM4.24, IHH Healthcare Bhd advanced four sen to RM6.59 and Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd was flat at RM8.79, while Tenaga Nasional Bhd and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd shed one sen each to RM9.69 and RM5.27, respectively.
Of the actives, both Tanco Holdings Bhd and NWP Holdings Bhd inched down half-a-sen to 26.5 sen and 27.5 sen, respectively, Ireka Corp Bhd appreciated three sen to 68.5 sen, Tiger Synergy Bhd was flat at 4.5 sen, Redtone eased half-a-sen to 68.5 sen and Sarawak Consolidated Industries Bhd shed three sen to 26 sen, while YBS International Bhd rose 6.5 sen to 44.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index decreased 19.12 points to 11,646.64, the FBMT 100 Index fell 18.15 points to 11,286.25, the FBM 70 went down 21.23 points to 15,308.87, the FBM Emas Shariah Index reduced by 32.4 points to 12,675.22, and the FBM ACE gave up 7.11 points to 7,114.55.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index slid 0.72 of-a-point to 207.97, the Plantation Index narrowed 2.15 points to 6,952.64, and the Financial Services Index was 5.03 points easier at 15,744.82.-BERNAMA