BURSA MALAYSIA EXTENDS RALLY FOR 4TH DAY, CI ENDS ABOVE 1,600 KEY LEVEL

By Anas Abu Hassan

KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia continued its uptrend to close above the 1,600 psychological level today, driven by positive investor sentiment and persistent optimism on the likelihood of a global interest rate cut, a dealer said.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) increased 0.52 per cent or 8.29 points to 1,605.68 from Monday’s close of 1,597.39, making this the highest level for the key index since April 2022.

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The barometer index, which opened 3.46 points higher at 1,600.85, moved between 1,600.66 in the early session and reached a high of 1,610.32 during the afternoon session.

On the broader market, gainers outpaced decliners 684 to 455, while 498 counters were unchanged, 676 untraded and 14 others suspended.

Turnover expanded to 5.42 billion units worth RM3.79 billion compared to 4.48 billion units worth RM3.12 billion on Monday.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng noted that the FBM KLCI finished higher for the fourth consecutive day, with buying observed across the board.

"We maintain our optimistic view on the local stock market, supported by appealing valuations and ongoing foreign investment, though we acknowledge the potential for profit-taking.

"We believe that if the benchmark index is able to stay above the 1,600 level over an extended period, there will be further upside potential," he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors’ designated portfolio manager and head of wealth research and advisory, Mohd Sedek Jantan anticipates that the Bank Negara Malaysia will maintain the interest rate at 3.0 per cent in the upcoming Monetary Policy Committee meeting this Thursday.

"As concerns regarding monetary policy ease and the Malaysian ringgit continuing to strengthen, we foresee continued growth in foreign investment in Malaysian equities," he added.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank and Public Bank each rose one sen to RM9.84 and RM4.21, CIMB added six sen to RM6.81, Tenaga Nasional increased 10 sen to RM12.48 and IHH Healthcare also perked up one sen to RM6.31.

As for the actives, Ingenieur dipped 2.5 sen to 8.5 sen, Iconic Worldwide rose 1.5 sen to 13 sen, TWL was flat at 2.5 sen, Capital A put on six sen to 90 sen, and MYEG gained half-a-sen to 92 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index climbed 64.20 points to 12,098.47, the FBMT 100 Index advanced 58.87 points to 11,715.85 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index jumped 72.96 points to 12,302.88.

The FBM 70 Index soared 78.17 points to 16,913.82 but the FBM ACE Index declined 53.02 points to 5,087.89.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index surged 101.47 points to 17,525.08, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.6 of-a-point to 192.54, the Plantation Index rose 46.51 points to 7,439.65, and the Energy Index ticked up 13.30 points to 976.01.

The Main Market volume expanded to 3.99 billion units worth RM3.41 billion from 2.54 billion units valued at RM2.63 billion on Monday.

Warrants turnover slipped to 796.35 million units worth RM117.88 million against 1.00 billion units worth RM164.47 million yesterday.

The ACE Market volume tumbled to 627.42 million shares valued at RM263.14 million versus 933.26 million shares valued at RM324.44 million previously.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 762.61 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (1.34 billion), construction (363.29 million), technology (320.49 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (124.49 million), property (547.97 million), plantation (30.69 million), REITs (26.53 million), closed/fund (68,000), energy (199.26 million), healthcare (67.79 million), telecommunications and media (51.42 million), transportation and logistics (41.26 million), utilities (109.95 million), and business trusts (1.38 million).

-- BERNAMA