BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
It was another up session on Bursa Malaysia with most stocks in the positive zone as Malaysian equities extended their recovery with a fourth session gain streak yesterday.
Once again, bargain hunting led stocks higher, taking cue from the gains in overseas equity markets with a return of the Trump Presidency.
Nevertheless, profit taking has commenced with many lower liners surrendering some of their recent gains as total traded volumes also thinned to a shade below 3 billion shares.
Near-term market conditions are still broadly positive amid the continuing recovery from the sell-down at the start of the month.
Although there are lingering uncertainties over the policies of the Trump Presidency, speculation continues to mount that his upcoming trade policies will not be as punitive as earlier anticipated.
As such, the on-going recovery is likely to sustain amid continuing bargain hunting activities that could still take hold for now.
The upsides, however, may be tempered by bouts of profit taking which could slow the recovery process with the immediate hurdle set at 1,590 points, followed by the 1,595 level and the psychological 1,600 level thereafter.
On the downside, the supports are at the 1,580-1,582 levels, followed by the 1,575 level.
Malacca Securities Research
The local bourse continued to close higher, supported by Malaysia’s CPI (consumer price index) growth of 1.7% for December (below consensus estimate of 1.8%) coupled with the Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) decision to keep the OPR unchanged.
The US markets closed higher, driven by optimism about potential tax cuts and a relatively stable economic outlook under President Trump as well as Netflix’s blowout quarterly results.
Investors will also access the initial jobless claims later today.
In the commodities market, Brent crude stayed below the US$80/barrel mark while gold price traded flat along the US$2,750/oz level. Meanwhile, CPO (crude palm oil) prices have fallen below the RM4,200/metric tonne level.
Despite the recent rebound, the index is currently resisted by the MA20 (20-day moving average). However, the technical indicators are showing recovery signs with the RSI rebounded off the oversold zone while the MACD Histogram is forming its rounding bottom formation.
Resistance is anticipated around 1,602-1,607 while support is set at 1,567-1,572. – Jan 23, 2025
