Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session on a positive note, with the key index increasing by 0.44 percent due to buying support in the banking and plantation sectors. At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) climbed 7.36 points to 1,693.90, compared to last Friday's closing figure of 1,686.54. The market opened slightly higher at 1,687.07 and fluctuated between 1,686.57 and 1,696.21 during the session.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the broader market reflected a favorable trend with 546 gainers compared to 409 losers, while 525 counters remained unchanged. A total of 1,170 counters were untraded, and 55 were suspended. The turnover was recorded at 1.89 billion units, valued at RM1.08 billion.
Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd commented that the FBM KLCI is anticipated to continue its recovery throughout the week. However, potential upward momentum might face challenges around the 1,700-1,720 levels. The note highlighted that investors will be focusing on Malaysia's advanced fourth quarter 2025 GDP release scheduled for January 15, 2026, with a consensus growth of 4.6 percent year-on-year. Additional factors of interest include geopolitical risks, a US Supreme Court tariff verdict, and the commencement of the US fourth quarter 2025 earnings season.
Among the leading financial stocks, Maybank increased by 10 sen to RM10.96, CIMB rose by five sen to RM8.20, Hong Leong Bank surged 22 sen to RM23.28, and RHB advanced three sen to RM7.88. Public Bank remained unchanged at RM4.58, Tenaga Nasional increased by two sen to RM13.58, and IHH Healthcare saw a rise of five sen to RM8.58.
In the list of the most active stocks, Ingenieur gained 1.5 sen to 4.5 sen, and Pharmaniaga rose by half a sen to 29 sen. Meanwhile, MMAG, Zetrix AI, and Dagang Nexchange remained stable at 6.5 sen, 83 sen, and 35 sen, respectively. Tanco experienced a decline of four sen to RM1.19.
Among the top gainers, United Plantations surged 98 sen to RM34.30, Fraser and Neave advanced 60 sen to RM36.60, IGB firmed 24 sen to RM3.69, Hong Leong Financial Group climbed 18 sen to RM19.92, and UMS Integration gained 17 sen to RM3.90.
On the other hand, the top decliners included Nestle, which dropped by RM1.10 to RM119.90, while Malaysian Pacific Industries and Far East Holding both lost 30 sen to RM33.00 and RM4.10, respectively. Vitrox decreased by 12 sen to RM4.57, and Genting fell five sen to RM2.91.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index added 54.84 points to 12,519.35, the FBM Top 100 Index rose 55.74 points to 12,307.99, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index gained 51.91 points to 12,299.82. The FBM Mid 70 Index climbed 89.67 points to 17,538.91, while the FBM ACE Index decreased by 16.49 points to 4,985.00.
In terms of sectors, the Financial Services Index increased by 121.92 points to 20,164.87, the Energy Index went up by 6.36 points to 787.58, while the Industrial Products and Services Index slightly decreased by 0.32 of a point to 173.01. The Plantation Index rose 111.11 points to 8,601.69.