Bursa Malaysia Ends Morning Session Marginally Higher

KUALA LUMPUR, July 28 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia ended the morning trading session marginally higher, rising by 0.29 per cent, driven by buying interest in selected heavyweight stocks, particularly in the financial services and industrial products and services sectors.

At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 4.46 points to 1,538.22, from Friday’s close of 1,533.76.

The benchmark index had opened 4.29 points firmer at 1,538.05 and moved between 1,531.28 to 1,539.38 throughout the session.

However, the broader market sentiment was slightly bearish, with losers edging past gainers 416 to 396, while 459 counters were unchanged, 1,281 untraded, and 43 suspended.

Turnover stood at 1.78 billion units worth RM992.39 million.

In a note today, Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd (HLIB) said investors are expected to trade cautiously ahead of the upcoming United States (US) Federal Reserve meeting and President Donald Trump’s Aug 1 tariff deadline.

It noted that the US and European Union  (EU) agreed on a hard-fought deal that will see the bloc face 15 per cent tariffs on most of its exports, staving off a trade war that could have delivered a hammer blow to the global economy.

“Additionally, caution may prevail amid expectations of a soft US August earnings season and the FBM KLCI’s seasonal underperformance. Domestic headwinds from subsidy rationalisation and the potential Sales and Services Tax expansion could further dampen consumer sentiment and earnings visibility.

“Therefore, we expect the local benchmark index to trade range-bound between 1,518 and 1,551 this week,” it said.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank and CIMB gained eight sen each to RM9.62 and RM6.83, respectively, and Press Metal Aluminium garnered nine sen to RM5.43, while Tenaga Nasional lost 10 sen to RM13.50 and Hong Leong Bank slipped 12 sen to RM19.24.

As for the actives, Tanco added one sen to 92.5 sen, NexG and Sapura Energy both inched up half-a-sen to 53 sen and four sen, respectively, Ekovest grew three sen to 43 sen and YTL Corporation advanced five sen to RM2.53.

Among the top gainers,  Nestle improved RM1.88 to RM87.38, SAM Engineering and Equipment edged up 14 sen to RM4.21 and Allianz Malaysia bagged 12 sen to 69 sen.

Top losers United Plantations slipped 28 sen to RM21.94 and Petronas Dagangan was 20 sen lower at RM21.50.

Across the broader market, the FBM Emas Index strengthened 33.02 points to 11,539.84, the FBMT 100 Index went up 30.36 points to 11,300.08, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index rose 15.77 points to 11,544.75.

The FBM 70 Index climbed 34.19 points to 16,641.76, while the FBM ACE Index edged up 10.40 points to 4,649.42

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index jumped 74.68 points to 17,528.91, the Industrial Products and Services Index was 1.27 points higher at 158.41, and the Energy Index ticked up 2.44 points to 742.29, while the Plantation Index lost 11.70 points to 7,423.09.

-- BERNAMA