BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
Malaysian equities edged down yesterday after Russia began its attack on Ukraine that roiled market sentiments and resulted in a flight to safety, causing a sharp sell-down in most Malaysian stocks.
Selling activity was overwhelming with losers beating gainers by nearly a 4-to-1 ratio that also sent the key index to its lowest level in two weeks.
However, tplantation and energy indices bucked the downtrend as they gained ground on the continuing climb in commodity prices.
Market conditions could remain fluid in the near term amid the escalating tensions in Eastern Europe that could leave most market players to stay wary.
Although Wall Street posted a positive close overnight to reduce the sell-off risk, there could be still hesitation as market players may not want to take up fresh positions ahead of the weekend as tensions could ramp-up further.
The uncertainties could leave market players to take a more defensive stance and may prompt further profit taking/selling in the days ahead.
Stocks could still veer to the downside albeit bouts of bargain hunting may appear, particularly on plantation and oil & gas (O&G)-related stocks that would help to ease some of the selling pressure.
As such, the immediate support at the 1,570 level which is followed by the 1,565 level. The near-term hurdles, on the other hand, are at 1,580 and 1,585 points respectively.
Malacca Securities Research
Taking cues from the global markets and the ongoing geopolitical tension, the FBM KLCI traded lower.
However, as investors and traders brushed off the concerns over the Ukraine-Russia tension, we believe that bargain hunting activities may return to the local market with investors on the look-out for oversold stocks for trading opportunities.
Moreover, it is worth noting that foreign funds are still net buyers in the market.
Meanwhile, safe-haven related sector such as gold are likely to take a setback for today amid extended trading movement yesterday.
We expect selective profit taking activities to emerge on the energy and plantation sectors as the Brent crude and crude palm oil (CPO) traded off their intraday high positions.
The FBM KLCI reversed its gains in the previous session and fell below the daily EMA9 level, breaching below the immediate support level at 1,580.
Technical indicators remained mixed as the Histogram is negative while RSI is slightly above 50. Resistance is set around 1,600-1,620 while the next support is located at 1,570. – Feb 25, 2022
