Bursa Malaysia Ends Slightly Lower, Tracking Regional Markets

By Danni Haizal Danial Donald

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia pared earlier losses to close marginally lower on Wednesday, mirroring most regional markets, as continued selling in selected heavyweights further dampened market sentiment.

At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 1.95 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 1,621.55 from Tuesday’s close of 1,623.50.

The benchmark index opened 1.26 points lower at 1,622.24, moved between 1,614.30 and 1,623.16 throughout the trading session.

The broader market was negative with 752 losers thumping 427 gainers, while 576 counters were unchanged, 887 untraded, and eight suspended.

Turnover rose to 4.77 billion units worth RM2.70 billion compared with 3.59 billion units worth RM2.65 billion on Tuesday.

IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said the slide in the FBM KLCI was led by declines in selected consumer counters, but the weakness was not broad-based, as several other consumer-related counters within the index continued to show resilience.

“As we move toward 2026, corporate earnings profiles, domestic consumption dynamics, and sectoral outlooks remain broadly constructive. Near-term volatility is more likely a recalibration of positioning rather than a shift in the medium-term trajectory of the local market,” he told Bernama.

Across Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi Index saw sharper intraday swings in high-growth sectors which had rallied strongly in recent months. Although selling pressure moderated later in the session, the scale of the movements reflected the market’s heightened caution, he said.

This was due to weaker global risk sentiment after Wall Street’s technology sector experienced a sharp pullback overnight as valuation concerns resurfaced following an extended rally. 

On the home front, Mohd Sedek remained firm on financial stocks ahead of Bank Negara Malaysia’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting tomorrow. He expects the overnight policy rate to remain at 2.75 per cent, thus maintaining a measured and data-dependent policy stance.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank edged down three sen to RM9.92, CIMB Group slid five sen to RM7.50, Tenaga Nasional dipped 10 sen to RM13.20, while Public Bank gained eight sen to RM4.34, and IHH Healthcare was flat at RM8.28.

On the most active list, NexG Bina (formerly Classita) slipped half-a-sen to four sen, MMAG fell 3.5 sen to 10.5 sen, while NexG gained two sen to 30 sen and Tanco perked up 3.5 sen to 88.5 sen. Borneo Oil was flat at half-a-sen.

As for the top gainers, Nestle surged RM3 to RM116, United Plantations added 46 sen to RM25.46, VSTECS and Westports both advanced 25 sen each to RM4.05 and RM5.35, and Time Dotcom bagged 21 sen to RM5.05.

Among the top losers, PJBumi fell 52 sen to RM1.25, Fraser & Neave fell 38 sen to RM27.80, Hong Leong Bank erased 28 sen to RM20.96, Sunway Construction slid 13 sen to RM5.67, and Malaysian Pacific Industries lost 12 sen to RM30.44.

On the index board, the FBMT 100 Index slipped 3.90 points to 11,807.15, the FBM Emas Index declined 5.24 points to 12,048.92, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index shrank 5.82 points to 12,049.61.

In contrast, the FBM ACE Index inched up 0.86 of-a-point to 5,076.95 and the FBM Mid 70 Index increased 39.37 points to 16,929.37.

By sector, the Plantation Index rose 26.54 points to 8,051.34, the Financial Services Index slid 27.63 points to 18,423.79, the Industrial Products and Services Index eased 1.07 points to 168.84, and the Energy Index shed 4.92 points to 761.83.

The Main Market volume increased to 2.05 billion units valued at RM2.16 billion from 1.91 billion units valued at RM2.28 billion on Tuesday.

Warrants turnover climbed to 2.04 billion units worth RM369.98 million compared with 1.02 billion units worth RM186.45 million previously.

The ACE Market volume expanded to 670.68 million units valued at RM160.92 million from 666.89 million units valued at RM180.34 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 586.89 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (342.43 million), construction (134.76 million), technology (359.05 million), financial services (59.87 million), property (217.66 million), plantation (41.69 million), real estate investment trusts (18.29 million), closed-end fund (9,100), energy (99.02 million), healthcare (94.65 million), telecommunications and media (33.54 million), transportation and logistics (43.59 million), utilities (21.68 million), and business trusts (184,300).

-- BERNAMA