BURSA Malaysia ended marginally higher today after a roller coaster session during the final hours as plantation heavyweights continued to push the key index, coupled with better regional market performances, a dealer said.
At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 1.82 points to 1,605.02 compared with 1,603.20 at yesterday’s close.
The index, which opened 6.72 points higher at 1,609.92, moved between 1,601.94 and 1,614.82 throughout the session.
The overall market breadth was positive with gainers surpassing losers 515 to 423, while 457 counters were unchanged, 843 untraded and 11 others suspended.
Total turnover improved to 3.91 billion units worth RM3.34 bil from 3.38 billion units worth RM2.86 bil on Wednesday.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the local bourse continued its uptrend and is approaching the 1,620 resistance level.
“We expect the index to go higher as buying from foreign funds is expected to resume although a mild correction is anticipated anytime soon.
“Hence, we reckon the FBM KLCI will trend range-bound and hover within the 1,605-1,615 range towards the weekend,” he said.
Regionally, key markets ended mostly higher despite mixed performance from Wall Street overnight.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose 0.2% to 3,446.03, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index increased 0.3% to 24,792.77, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 eased 0.83% to 27,232.87.
Bursa heavyweights Sime Darby Plantation advanced 27 sen to RM4.91, KL Kepong improved RM1 to RM26.60, TM gained seven sen to RM5.55, PPB advanced 20 sen to RM17.24, while Maybank fell 1 sen to RM8.68.
As for the actives, Vortex Consolidated rose 1 sen to 8 sen, SMTrack gained 1.5 sen to 24 sen, while Dagang NeXchange lost 1 sen to RM1.26. – Feb 17, 2022
