BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Berjaya Research
The FBM KLCI registered its third consecutive day of losses on Friday as the key index edged lower following Malaysia’s announcement of a moderation in 1Q 2026 GDP (gross domestic product) growth.
Trading activity rose slightly with 3.92 billion shares traded compared to 3.91 billion shares in the previous session.
Market breadth remained negative with 814 decliners outpacing 427 advancers, implying cautious market sentiment and persistent selling pressure across the broader market.
The FBM KLCI is expected to remain range-bound with a cautious tone to persist over the near term as the meeting between US President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping failed to meet markets expectations.
Investors will also closely monitor upcoming China retail sales data for further indications on the strength of its domestic consumption recovery.
Meanwhile, the unresolved conflict in the Middle East may continue to weigh on the prospects of the market’s recovery.
Technically, the key index has formed another bearish candlestick to remain in a pullback mode. The near-term supports are now shifted to 1,732 points, followed by 1,725 points.
Meanwhile, the immediate resistance is located at 1,750 points, followed by 1,754 points.
Malacca Securities Research
As the FBM KLCI approaches its EMA20 (20-period exponential moving average), we expect a rebound to occur soon.
Meanwhile, the REIT sector is showing a decent recovery where Sunway REIT and Pavilion REIT possess strong fundamentals with dividend yields above 5%.
Given the rebound in Brent oil price, traders could position themselves in Dialog Group Bhd and PETRONAS Chemicals Group Bhd; the former has announced a strong 3Q FY6/2026 financial result and serves as a potential candidate for inclusion in the FBM KLCI benchmark which is set to expand to 50 constituents.
Lastly, following a period of being overbought, we view the recent profit-taking activities in the technology sector as a healthy pullback, thus remaining positive on Vitrox Corp Bhd, UWC Bhd and Inari Amertron Bhd.
While the FBM KLCI continued to dip marginally, the technical indicators are showing mixed signals at the current juncture with the MACD histogram having expanded towards the negative territory while the RSI is trading above 50.
Resistance is seen around 1,755-1,760 with support at 1,720-1,725. – May 18, 2026
