Stock market in Bursa experiences modest decline at the close
Malaysia's Stock Market Shows Resilience Amid US Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole Symposium
The Malaysian stock market showed resilience and cautious optimism ahead of and following the US Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium. The FBM KLCI (the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index) edged higher, supported by buying from local institutional investors, especially in laggard stocks.
The index hovered around the 1,590-1,600 range and recently reached a six-month high at about 1,597 points, driven by strong bargain hunting and investor optimism related to a likely Fed rate cut. Positive sentiment was also bolstered by a finalized US-Malaysia trade agreement reducing tariffs on Malaysian exports and a general shift toward emerging market assets.
The plantation index garnered 46.12 points to 7,592.60, while the energy index eased 0.93 of a point to 749.29. At 5pm, the FBM KLCI closed at 1,588.21, a decrease of 2.03 points or 0.13% from Tuesday's close of 1,590.24.
IHH Healthcare rose three sen to RM6.88, while Vantris Energy eased 0.5 sen to 3.5 sen. Tanco remained unchanged at 73 sen, and Zetrix AI added one sen to 87.5.
The Main Market volume dipped to 1.46 billion units valued at RM2.28 billion, lower than the previous day's volume. The ACE Market volume also declined to 310.2 million units worth RM124.67 million.
The industrial products and services index perked up 1.61 points to 160.73, while the financial services index slid 20.36 points to 18,165.14. The FBM ACE Index slipped 13.77 points to 4,695.92, and the FBM Emas Index decreased 29.58 points to 11,782.83. The FBM Emas Shariah Index gave up 32.06 points to 11,699.34.
A total of 487 counters were unchanged, 1,084 were untraded, and 16 were suspended. The broader market was negative with decliners outpacing advancers 647 to 376.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research, Thong Pak Leng, views today's profit-taking as a healthy correction that allows the market to digest the recent strong uptrend. Barring any external shocks, the benchmark index is expected to trade within the 1,570 to 1,600 range throughout the week, according to Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd.
The head of investment research at UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd, Sedek Jantan, stated that the broader market sentiment remains guarded ahead of policy signals from the US Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium.
In conclusion, the Jackson Hole Symposium’s outcome reinforced expectations of Fed easing that in turn supported cautious buying and moderate gains in Malaysia’s FBM KLCI and select sectoral indices, while investors remain watchful of ongoing global trade and tariff developments.
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