Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia’s benchmark index ended at its intraday high, buoyed by bargain hunting following Tuesday’s sell-off, despite mixed performances across regional markets. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 9.83 points, or 0.61 percent, to 1,623.89, up from Tuesday’s close of 1,614.06. Initially, the benchmark index opened slightly lower at 1,613.44 and remained within a narrow range throughout the day before late buying activity pushed it to the day’s high.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the broader market saw decliners outnumbering advancers 572 to 497, with 573 counters unchanged, 1,144 untraded, and 10 suspended. The market turnover increased to 4.64 billion units valued at RM2.96 billion compared to Tuesday’s 4.33 billion units valued at RM3.20 billion.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng noted that the key index remains supported at current levels, indicating persistent buying interest during market softening. He mentioned that while global sentiment has been uncertain due to concerns about a potential bubble in AI-related stocks, Malaysia’s market impact has been manageable. Thong emphasized the need to remain vigilant about external risks, as significant movements in global tech markets could affect the region. Despite these concerns, he maintained a positive outlook on the local market, highlighting Malaysia’s attractive valuations and stable domestic conditions. Thong anticipated the FBM KLCI to trend within the 1,620-1,650 range for the rest of the week.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank added one sen to RM9.93, Public Bank gained three sen to RM4.28, CIMB climbed 12 sen to RM7.57, IHH Healthcare rose five sen to RM8.25, TNB remained flat at RM13.18, and CelcomDigi fell eight sen to RM3.39. On the most active list, Zetrix AI increased by 2.5 sen to 84.5 sen, Tanco rose two sen to RM1.01, PMW International edged up half-a-sen to 35 sen, Farm Fresh remained flat at RM2.40, and Bumi Armada decreased by two sen to 28.5 sen.

Among the top gainers, BLD Plantation surged RM2.02 to RM12.78, United Plantations increased 96 sen to RM28, Mesiniaga climbed 25 sen to RM1.30, and Bintulu Port rose 20 sen to RM5.30. Conversely, the top losers included Dutch Lady, which dipped 70 sen to RM28.60, Fraser and Neave, which decreased 40 sen to RM32.60, Petronas Dagangan, which fell 38 sen to RM21.12, and Malayan Cement, which declined by 22 sen to RM6.28.

On the index board, the FBMT 100 Index increased by 58.42 points to 11,799.74, the FBM Emas Index rose by 55.34 points to 12,025.30, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index was up by 46.15 points at 12,014.3. The FBM ACE Index rose by 10.65 points to 4,922.75, and the FBM Mid 70 Index gained 26.72 points to 16,812.39.

Sector-wise, the Plantation Index surged 106.91 points to 8,225.53, the Financial Services Index rose 105.47 points to 18,444.06, the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 0.18 of-a-point to 165.33, and the Energy Index decreased by 2.82 points to 758.69.

The Main Market volume decreased to 1.46 billion units valued at RM2.34 billion compared to 1.56 billion units valued at RM2.54 billion on Tuesday. Warrants turnover expanded to 2.47 billion units worth RM394.73 million from 2.27 billion units worth RM381.29 million the previous day. The ACE Market volume jumped to 711.02 million units valued at RM232.33 million against 506.73 million units valued at RM186.67 million previously.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 287.63 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (311.30 million), construction (70.70 million), technology (203.18 million), financial services (65.20 million), property (171.16 million), plantation (60.59 million), real estate investment trusts (21.54 million), closed-end fund (24,800), energy (109.59 million), healthcare (83.07 million), telecommunications and media (30.10 million), transportation and logistics (28.64 million), utilities (206.60 million), and business trusts (104,200).