Kuala Lumpur:Bursa Malaysia ended the day on a positive note, following gains in major Asian markets and a technology-led rally on Wall Street, despite ongoing caution due to high US Treasury yields.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose by 1.60 points, closing at 1,633.35, up from Monday's close of 1,631.75. The index opened 4.63 points higher at 1,636.38 and fluctuated between 1,632.77 and 1,641.20 during the trading session.
The broader market saw gainers surpass decliners with 667 to 456, while 551 counters remained unchanged, 1,108 were untraded, and 13 were suspended. Turnover decreased, with 4.18 billion units worth RM2.95 billion traded, compared to the previous day's 4.78 billion units worth RM2.89 billion.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd's vice-president of equity research, Thong Pak Leng, noted that US Treasury yields were at their highest since 2002, affecting risk appetite. However, Brent crude oil prices eased below US$100 per barrel, alleviating supply concerns due to resilient exports from West Asia and the G7's emergency stockpile release.
Domestically, there was buying interest in telecommunications and commodity-related stocks, with trading activity expanding to selected small-cap technology, energy, and plantation counters. Thong suggested that selected blue chips could attract bargain hunting but warned about persistent foreign selling and elevated bond yields limiting recovery.
Thong also highlighted that easing crude oil prices and anticipation of Budget 2027 might support market sentiment. The budget, set to be tabled on Friday, will focus on sectors such as semiconductors, AI, digitalization, energy transition, pharmaceuticals, logistics, and aerospace.
For the rest of the week, Thong anticipates the benchmark index to remain in consolidation mode with a mild recovery bias. Key factors to watch include Budget 2027, foreign fund flows, bond yields, and geopolitical developments. The FBM KLCI trading range is expected to be between 1,620-1,650 for the week.
Among the heavyweights, IHH Healthcare gained 15 sen to RM7.91, while Maybank and CIMB saw slight declines. In active trade, Zetrix AI and Supermax showed improvements, while SLGC, a new ACE Market entry, decreased slightly.
Top gainers included Malaysian Pacific Industries and Nestle, while Dutch Lady Milk Industries led the losers. The index board showed increases in the FBM Mid 70, FBM Emas, FBM Top 100, FBM Emas Shariah, and FBM ACE indices. Sectoral indices had mixed outcomes, with gains in the Industrial Products and Services, Energy, and Plantation indices, while the Financial Services Index dropped.
Overall market volume on the Main Market, warrants turnover, and ACE Market volume showed varied activity levels across different sectors.