Kuala Lumpur: Bursa Malaysia recovered from earlier losses to close marginally higher, buoyed by renewed optimism in the data centre segment and a sectoral rotation into defensive plays. Investors positioned cautiously amid heightened geopolitical tensions.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the rebound was in line with most regional markets’ performance, as investors looked ahead to several central banks’ meetings this week. At the close of trading, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 1.88 points, or 0.12 percent, reaching 1,519.99 from last Friday’s close of 1,518.11. The benchmark index, which opened slightly lower at 1,517.87, fluctuated between 1,512.26 and 1,521.38 throughout the session.

Market breadth was negative, with 612 decliners surpassing 321 gainers, while 509 counters remained unchanged, 973 were untraded, and 21 were suspended. Turnover decreased to 2.83 billion units worth RM2.04 billion compared with Friday’s 2.88 billion units valued at RM2.06 billion.

UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd’s head of investment research, Mohd Sedek Jantan, noted that the FBM KLCI’s performance today indicated continued resilience in Malaysia’s domestic economy. Gains were led by technology and utilities counters, particularly those with strong domestic exposure.

Mohd Sedek observed that today’s market performance mirrored patterns seen during the onset of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with plantation and energy stocks driving sectoral gains on Bursa Malaysia. This trend reflects a broader shift towards commodities and inflation-sensitive sectors amid geopolitical uncertainty. Despite these risks, regional equity markets broadly rebounded, supported by an improved macroeconomic outlook in the United States.

Meanwhile, SPI Asset Management managing director Stephen Innes stated that today’s market activity appeared more as rotation rather than panic selling. Local funds were opting for lower-risk regional exchanges with deeper liquidity and larger defense companies, as geopolitical hedging becomes integral to their strategy. Innes noted that Bursa Malaysia initially lagged behind other markets but managed to hold up relatively well by the close.

Among the energy-related heavyweights, Tenaga firmed by 6.0 sen to RM14.36, Petronas Gas rose 12 sen to RM17.96, Petronas Chemicals increased by 7.0 sen to RM3.40, and MISC climbed by 8.0 sen to RM7.58. In contrast, Maybank fell by 11 sen to RM9.59, Public Bank eased by 2.0 sen to RM4.23, CIMB shed 7.0 sen to RM6.75, and IHH Healthcare improved by 1.0 sen to RM6.91.

Among the most actively traded stocks, MYEG decreased by 2.5 sen to 93 sen, Tanco eased by half-a-sen to 95.5 sen, while Thrive Property Group, NexG, Velesto Energy, and Reservoir Link Energy each added half-a-sen to 1.5 sen, 35.5 sen, 19 sen, and 36 sen respectively.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index slid 9.39 points to 11,360.79, the FBMT 100 Index fell 5.69 points to 11,138.35, but the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased 44.13 points to 11,373.66. The FBM 70 Index declined 85.25 points to 16,283.46, and the FBM ACE Index dropped 15.38 points to 4,471.81.

Sector-wise, the Energy Index advanced 11.40 points to 752.16, and the Plantation Index surged 129.35 points to 7,350.27. The Financial Services Index slipped 147.25 points to 17,501.00, and the Industrial Products and Services Index trimmed 0.22 of-a-point to 151.13.

The Main Market volume narrowed to 1.25 billion units valued at RM1.80 billion from 1.37 billion units worth RM1.81 billion registered at Friday’s close. Warrants turnover expanded to 1.35 billion units worth RM171.62 million, compared with 1.16 billion units valued at RM151.36 million previously. The ACE Market volume dwindled to 228.89 million units valued at RM74.30 million against 359.88 million units worth RM97.50 million on Friday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 210.90 million shares traded on the Main Market, followed by industrial products and services (166.96 million), construction (85.22 million), technology (165.43 million), financial services (68.42 million), property (132.48 million), energy (207.16 million), healthcare (61.74 million), and telecommunications and media (33.36 million), among others.