At 11.05am, the FBM KLCI lost 34.29 points to 1,310.46 from Friday’s close of 1,344.75, after opening 25.38 points lower at 1,319.37 this morning.
On the broader market, losers beat gainers 857 to 78, with 137 counters unchanged, 949 not traded and 31 others suspended.
Turnover amounted to 1.40 billion shares worth RM9.82 mil.
At this juncture, PublicInvest Research said the index is anticipated to stage a technical rebound, which could be short-lived should there still be excessive selling pressure.
“The FBM KLCI is hence expected to trend sideways in the near term, hovering around the 1,360 mark to accommodate the potentially persistent selling pressure. Support levels for the index are at 1,190, 1,250 and 1,310, while the resistance levels are at 1,360, 1,400 and 1,430,” it said in a note today.
Selling pressure was seen in the local market amid uncertainties due to Covid-19 that have triggered travel bans and a recession scare, coupled with lower oil prices.
The decline in the FBM KLCi was also in line with regional bourses, with Singapore’s Straits Times Index down 2.31% at 2,573.18 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index lost 1.86% to 23,585.64 and the Jakarta Composite Index declined 2.75% to 4,772.50.
Among heavyweights on Bursa Malaysia, Maybank decreased 28 sen to RM7.60, Tenaga erased 20 sen to RM11.62, Public Bank fell 44 sen to RM14.86 and IHH was five sen weaker at RM5.33.
Of the actives, Borneo Oil was unchanged at 1.5 sen, Bumi Armada eased 1.5 sen to 14.5 sen and Jaks Resources eased four sen to 79 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index depreciated 277.70 points to 9,048.71, the FBM Emas Shariah Index depressed 239.40 points to 9,745.59 and the FBM 70 contracted 451.32 points to 10,558.91.
The FBMT 100 Index shed 266.75 points to 8,952.21 and the FBM Ace dropped 242.03 points to 4,049.96.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched down 5.58 points to 105.09, the Financial Services Index gave up 454.24 points to 12,368.10 and the Plantation Index slipped 69.74 points to 5,777.77. – March 16, 2020, Bernama
