Kuala Lumpur: Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session higher, driven by renewed buying interest in selected heavyweights in the banking and utilities sectors amid positive sentiment. At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose by 17.07 points, or 1.13 per cent, reaching 1,529.22 compared to Friday’s close of 1,512.15.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the benchmark index opened 5.43 points stronger at 1,517.58, marking its lowest level of the day before climbing to a high of 1,531.63 during the morning session. On the broader market, gainers outnumbered decliners 653 to 253, with 395 counters remaining unchanged, 1,123 untraded, and seven suspended. Turnover stood at 1.83 billion shares worth RM1.22 billion.
SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes noted that investors have temporarily shifted to bargain-hunting mode while staying cautious due to global uncertainties. “Global markets will open the week with a series of key data releases and policy events that could set the tone for global risk sentiment. With macroeconomic uncertainty still high, Monday’s data-heavy session could drive significant market swings, setting the stage for the week ahead,” he told Bernama.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank rose eight sen to RM10.40, Public Bank gained five sen to RM4.53, Tenaga Nasional increased by 20 sen to RM13.60, CIMB climbed 19 sen to RM7.26, while IHH Healthcare remained unchanged at RM7.10. For active stocks, Sapura Energy remained flat at five sen, Pertama Digital added 4.5 sen to 10 sen, MYEG gained two sen to 95 sen, and both Saliran and NexG edged up by one sen to 23.5 sen and 26.5 sen, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index climbed 135.22 points to 11,435.36, the FBMT 100 Index advanced 129.31 points to 11,199.14, the FBM Emas Shariah Index expanded 121.97 points to 11,111.55, the FBM 70 Index grew by 205.95 points to 16,344.42, and the FBM ACE Index notched up 15.14 points to 4,692.82. By sector, the Financial Services Index garnered 242.93 points to 18,765.75, the Industrial Products and Services Index strengthened 1.82 points to 155.55, the Energy Index gained 14.85 points to 733.58, and the Plantation Index added 43.98 points to 7,413.73.