BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
Malaysian stocks lost ground again at the end of last week with quick profit taking emerging to leave the key index below the 1,640 level and surrendering the gains it attained a day earlier.
Public Bank Bhd was the main drag on the FBM KLCI after it announced the acquisition of a 44% stake in LPI Capital Bhd with the broader market stocks also seeing increased selling in tandem with weakness of regional equities. Market breadth was negative with volumes slipping further to just 2.3 billion shares.
With the thin market interest, market conditions are also likely to stay indifferent with sideways-to-downward bias to persist amid the continuing lack of noteworthy impetuses.
As it is, most market players are still on the sidelines, scouring for more leads before making their decisions.
In particular, the market is awaiting the unveiling of Budget 2025 for clues on the economy’s direction and the corresponding impact on corporates.
At the same time, there were few fresh leads from China’s stimulus measures, hence this could leave the Malaysian equity market to drift for longer, casting aside Wall Street’s record-breaking run.
Amid the continuing wait-and-see stance, the FBM KLCI’s immediate support is now pegged at 1,630 points, followed by the 1,625 level. The resistances, meanwhile, are at 1,640 and 1,645 points respectively.
Malacca Securities Research
The local market conditions stabilised despite the ringgit weakening last week as traders anticipate a potential recovery ahead of the tabling of Budget 2025 this Friday (Oct 18).
In the US, Wall Street saw record highs in the Dow and S&P 500 while the Nasdaq gained momentum after September’s PPI (producer price index) data came in cooler-than-expected. This has led to the market pricing in a soft-landing scenario going forward.
In the commodities market, Brent crude is trading below US$78/barrel as disappointing Chinese inflation data over the weekend raised demand concerns.
Meanwhile, gold prices held steady around US$2,650/oz as September’s easing PPI data supported the metal. Crude palm oil (CPO) rebounded, closing at RM4,350/metric tonne.
The FBM KLCI index closed lower at the 1,633 level. Meanwhile, the technical readings on the key index are improving, with the MACD histogram formed the rounding bottom formation but the RSI is still trended below 50.
The resistance is envisaged around 1,648-1,653 while the support is set at 1,613-1,618. – Oct 14, 2024
