Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia opened lower in early trade on Wednesday, tracking weaker cues from Wall Street overnight as technology-related stocks retreated. At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 4.70 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 1,679.83 from Tuesday's close of 1,684.53. The benchmark index had opened 2.75 points lower at 1,681.78.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, market breadth was negative, with decliners outpacing gainers 119 to 106. A total of 279 counters were unchanged, while 2,182 were untraded and 41 suspended. Turnover amounted to 86.18 million shares valued at RM41.84 million. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng noted that Wall Street ended weaker as sentiment was weighed by the latest Federal Reserve minutes, which signalled growing divisions over the pace of future US interest rate cuts.
On the domestic front, Thong stated that the local market's undertone remained resilient, underpinned by persistent accumulation by local institutions despite continued net foreign outflows. He remarked that retail participation has been weak, as reflected by low daily volumes, but expressed optimism that this may improve over time once liquidity picks up in the large-cap space. For the day, Thong anticipated the index to trade within the 1,680 - 1,690 range.
Among heavyweight stocks, Maybank fell four sen to RM10.46, while CIMB, Public Bank, and IHH Healthcare slid three sen each to RM8.20, RM4.51, and RM8.57 respectively. Tenaga Nasional remained unchanged at RM13.78. On the most active list, MQ Technology and AHB were flat at 8.5 sen and 3.5 sen respectively, while Zetrix and Perak Transit eased half a sen to 81.5 sen and 27.5 sen, with Mega Fortris gaining one sen to 89 sen.
Among top gainers, Hap Seng rose eight sen to RM2.90, while Kein Hin and Country View advanced six sen each to RM1.29 and RM2.99. Yoong Onn added five sen to RM1.58. Top decliners saw Vitrox fall seven sen to RM4.08, while United Plantations and SD Guthrie lost six sen each to RM30.18 and RM5.69. Press Metal and QL Resources slipped four sen each to RM7.18 and RM3.79 respectively.
On the broader market, the FBM Emas Index shed 23.38 points to 12,301.17, the FBM Top 100 Index fell 27.98 points to 12,108.41, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 17.90 points to 12,101.67. The FBM Mid 70 Index dropped 12 points to 16,818.45, while the FBM ACE Index climbed 3.38 points to 4,864.68. Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index slid 57.82 points to 19,708.97, the Energy Index dipped 0.98 of-a-point to 767.75, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 0.04 of-a-point to 173.79, and the Plantation Index lost 16.06 points to 8,326.13.