FOREIGN investors turned net sellers by snapping the three-week streak of net buying on Bursa Malaysia with -RM63.7 mil in outflows during the April 13-17 trading period from a commendable net buying position of RM470.3 mil the prior week.
They were net sellers on three out of five trading days during the week, according to MBSB Research (formerly MIDF Research).
“The largest outflow was recorded on Wednesday (April 15) (-RM102.3 mil), followed by Thursday (April 16) (-RM87.5 mil) and Friday (April 17) (-RM59.0 mil),” observed the research house in its weekly fund flow report.
The top three sectors that recorded net foreign inflows were financial services (RM342.0 mil), energy (RM37.2 mil) and plantation (RM32.3 mil).
Meanwhile, the top three sectors with net foreign outflows were utilities (-RM103.7 mil), healthcare (-RM99.1 mil) and consumer products & services (-RM79.5 mil).
On the contrary, local institutions snapped their three-week net selling streak by turning net buyers during the week with a net inflow of RM273.3 mil.
However, retailers reverted to net selling with net outflows of -RM209.6 mil.
The average daily trading volume (ADTV) had a mixed performance with that of retailers rose by 6.4%, local institutions declined by -1.9% while foreign institutions saw an increase of 9.8%.
In comparison with another four Southeast Asian markets tracked by MBSB Research, all recorded outflows led by Thailand as foreign investors turned net sellers after having disposed of stocks valued at -US$228.8 mil.
This came on the back of profit-taking having emerged in selected heavyweight names as investors wanted to largely remain on the sidelines while adopting a cautious stance amid the on-going uncertainties surrounding developments in the Middle East.
Elsewhere, Indonesia extended its streak of net foreign selling to a fourth week with in a row with outflows reaching -US$158.3 mil.
In Vietnam, foreign investors extended their net selling to a fifth consecutive week with outflows amounting to -US$170.6 mil while the Philippines recorded a seventh straight week of net selling with -US$79.2 mil in net foreign outflows.
The top three stocks with the highest net money inflow from foreign investors last week were Malayan Banking Bhd (RM150.4 mil), RHB Bank Bhd (RM93.9 mil) and Hong Leong Bank (RM79.2 mil). – April 20, 2026
