KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session slightly higher as gains in plantation stocks helped offset selling pressure in the financial sector. At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) was 1.09 points, or 0.07 per cent higher at 1,595.38 from Friday’s close of 1,594.29. The index opened 2.55 points higher at 1,596.84 and moved between 1,594.64 and 1,603.94 throughout the morning session.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the market breadth was negative with decliners outpacing gainers 518 to 428 while 443 counters were unchanged, 1,026 remained untraded, and 15 were suspended. Turnover stood at 1.67 billion shares valued at RM1.06 billion. Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd noted an expected sustained buying interest in plantation stocks, supported by the continued upward momentum in crude palm oil prices and strong earnings reported by plantation companies.
The research note highlighted that while the FBMKLCI retreated below the 1,600 level, a rebound could emerge as the market enters the
window dressing period. Despite foreign exchange losses impacting export-oriented companies due to the ringgit’s strength in the third quarter of 2024, a positive outlook is maintained on sectors such as technology and gloves, which could benefit from the ringgit’s depreciation of at least 7.5 per cent since the end of September.
In terms of individual stocks, heavyweight counter Maybank lost eight sen to RM10.12, Tenaga Nasional fell 18 sen to RM13.48, and IHH dropped nine sen to RM7.17. CIMB and Public Bank each gained one sen, closing at RM8.26 and RM4.48, respectively. Among the top gainers, plantation major KLK rose 62 sen to RM21.48, United Plantation increased by 60 sen to RM30.90, and Press Metal advanced 26 sen to RM4.90. MPI and FandN each added 18 sen to RM24.04 and RM27.80, respectively.
Active stocks included Velesto, which eased half-a-sen to 15.5 sen, while Ta Win, Capital A, and Aimflex remained flat at 2.5 sen, RM1.00, and 16 sen, respectively. Sime Darby Property saw a gain of six sen to R
M1.49. On the index board, the FBM Emas Shariah Index gained 48.82 points to 12,083.52, the FBM Emas Index added 8.54 points to 12,139.67, and the FBMT 100 Index increased by 5.38 points to 11,829.17. Meanwhile, the FBM 70 Index dropped 1.91 points to 17,857.91, and the FBM ACE Index decreased by 21.08 points to 5,110.57.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index rose by 2.53 points to 172.82, the Plantation Index surged 130.30 points to 7,662.12, and the Financial Services Index fell by 87.54 points to 19,102.48. The Energy Index decreased by 5.49 points to 806.80.