UNCERTAINTIES surrounding the extension of the movement control order as the daily COVID-19 infections stayed above the 4,000-mark continued to weigh on the stock market, with the key index hitting its lowest level since November 2020.
At 5 pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slid 14.97 points to 1,544.71 from Friday’s close of 1,559.68.
The market bellwether opened 2.22 of-a-point lower at 1,557.46 and moved between 1,539.60 and 1,557.58 throughout the session.
On the broader market, losers thumped gainers 976 to 133, while 342 counters were unchanged, 786 untraded, and 42 others suspended.
Turnover decreased to 4.73 billion units valued at RM2.41 bil from 5.41 billion units valued at RM2.56 bil last Friday.
Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd economist Adam Mohamed Rahim said sentiment was significantly dampened by the uncertainties over the opening of the economy amid the extension of the current movement restrictions.
Aside from that, Malaysia’s latest exports data for May 2021, which surged by 47.3% year-on-year, failed provide an impetus to the market.
“On further scrutiny, major losers in the FBM KLCI were Sime Darby and Top Glove, which declined by 2.7% and 2.8% respectively during the day.
“On a sectoral basis, the Bursa Malaysia Energy Index dropped the most by 2.2% as anxiety builds up ahead of the July 1 OPEC meeting, whereby the group will decide on whether to further ease production cuts,” he told Bernama.
At 5 pm, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced the National People’s Well-Being and Economic Recovery Package (PEMULIH) worth RM150 bil including a RM10 bil fiscal injection to support the people.
Adam said the reaction towards the package may be mixed as Malaysia is likely facing rating downgrades due to significant amount of stimulus efforts.
Among the heavyweights, only PChem and Genting Malaysia remained in the positive territory, gaining 12 sen to RM8.12 and three sen to RM2.86 respectively. RHB Bank was unchanged at RM5.42.
Top Glove eased 12 sen to RM4.23, CIMB was eight sen weaker at RM4.61, Press Metal dropped nine sen to RM4.79, and Public Bank lost four sen to RM4.15.
Of the actives, Serba Dinamik fell 8.5 sen to 32.5 sen, while Fintec and Dagang NeXchange reduced half-a-sen each to three sen and 72.5 sen respectively. – June 28, 2021
