Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia gave up early gains to end lower today as risk appetite waned due to fading hopes of de-escalation in the West Asia conflict, impacting investor sentiment. At the close of trading, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) decreased by 11.95 points or 0.69 percent, settling at 1,708.76 compared to last Thursday's closing of 1,720.71.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the market bellwether opened 11.38 points higher at 1,732.09 but experienced fluctuations throughout the day, ranging between 1,704.06 and 1,732.09. Market breadth was negative as there were 968 losers compared to 284 gainers, with 399 counters remaining unchanged, 1,114 untraded, and 28 suspended. Turnover fell to 3.35 billion units valued at RM4.03 billion from last Thursday's 3.36 billion units worth RM4.96 billion.
IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan commented that the FBM KLCI's early rise was influenced by gains on Wall Street, following US President Donald Trump's indication of potential progress in West Asia. However, optimism waned as Tehran dismissed the notion of talks as 'fake news,' denying any negotiations had taken place. Reports of potential involvement from regional and Gulf actors further fueled market uncertainty, prompting investors to adopt a risk-off stance, causing the index to reverse earlier gains.
Further insights revealed that US equities had a brief rally overnight after Trump's announcement to delay planned military strikes on Iran to stabilize oil prices, but the rally was short-lived. Brent crude oil prices remained above US$100 per barrel, continuing to weigh on sentiment. The market witnessed headline-driven trading, with S and P 500 futures turning lower post-close, indicating ongoing volatility as Asian markets reopen.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng noted that future market direction will be sensitive to crude oil prices and geopolitical developments. Investors are expected to pivot towards commodity-linked and defensive sectors such as plantations and energy, while reducing exposure to high-risk growth stocks. Given the heightened market volatility, FBM KLCI is anticipated to trend within the 1,690-1,730 range for the week.
Among significant movers, Maybank fell by 26 sen to RM11.34, Public Bank decreased by 1.0 sen to RM4.86, CIMB dropped 4.0 sen to RM7.83, Tenaga Nasional declined by 2.0 sen to RM14.28, and IHH Healthcare lost 5.0 sen to RM8.98. In contrast, top gainers included Petronas Gas, which increased by RM1.06 to RM17.86, Fraser and Neave rose by 42 sen to RM29.72, Petronas Chemicals gained 32 sen to RM5.80, Dutch Lady Milk Industries added 28 sen to RM31.98, and Master-Pack climbed 10 sen to RM1.75.
On the losing end, Nestle slid RM1.96 to RM98.44, United Plantations fell RM1.00 to RM33.82, Hong Leong Financial dipped 70 sen to RM19.30, Allianz Malaysia sank 64 sen to RM20.68, and Malaysian Pacific Industries declined 52 sen to RM29.08.
On the index board, the FBM Top 100 Index dropped 105.12 points to 12,283.67, the FBM Emas Index fell 116.99 points to 12,421.81, the FBM 70 Index declined 230.72 points to 16,912.26, the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 95.68 points to 12,171.62, and the FBM ACE Index dipped 84.36 points to 4,319.93.
By sector, the Financial Services Index tumbled 298.18 points to 20,380.94, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 2.51 points to 180.65, the Energy Index shaved off 5.81 points to 788.0, and the Plantation Index slid 50.43 points to 8,638.47. The Main Market volume improved slightly to 2.22 billion units valued at RM3.82 billion from 2.09 billion units valued at RM4.74 billion last Thursday. However, warrants turnover decreased to 872.86 million units worth RM120.07 million from 1.02 billion units worth RM129.59 million previously. The ACE Market volume expanded to 260.98 million units valued at RM82.34 million from 245.39 million units valued at RM91.69 million previously.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 320.33 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (517.79 million), construction (155.27 million), technology (210.43 million), financial services (125.92 million), property (181.98 million), plantation (34.88 million), real estate investment trusts (140.45 million), closed-end fund (228,200), energy (194.31 million), healthcare (219.19 million), telecommunications and media (40.59 million), transportation and logistics (39.70 million), utilities (34.93 million), and business trusts (231,300).