BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Berjaya Research
The FBM KLCI extended its gains on Friday, recovering all of its earlier weekly losses and ultimately closing 0.1% higher week-on-week.
Trading activity improved with total volume rising to 3.72 billion shares from 2.85 billion shares in the previous session, supported by bargain-hunting activities.
However, market breadth turned negative with 675 decliners outpacing 411 gainers, indicating that the broader market sentiment remained somewhat mixed despite the benchmark index’s recovery.
The FBM KLCI is expected to trade with a slight negative bias in the near term as investors remain cautious amid on-going geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, potentially mirroring the weakness on Wall Street last Friday.
Heightened uncertainty surrounding the region could also dampen global risk appetite and trigger intermittent bouts of profit-taking across regional markets, including Malaysia.
Overall sentiment is likely to stay fragile as investors monitor developments in the geopolitical landscape and their potential implications on energy prices, inflation expectations and global market stability.
Technically, the FBM KLCI has formed another bullish candlestick to stabilise above the 1,700 psychological level.
The local bourse may attempt to defend the 1,700 psychological level again with the next support located at 1,685 points. Meanwhile, the immediate resistance remains pegged at 1,720 points, followed by 1,737 points.
Malacca Securities Research
As Middle East tensions show little sign of de-escalation, we expect sentiment to remain volatile for the local bourse which may continue to benefit energy and chemical stocks.
Meanwhile, following Gamuda Bhd’s stellar 2Q FY6/2026 performance, supported by a RM44.0 bil order book and RM8 bil in unbilled property sales – we anticipate a recovery of its share price in the near term.
Moreover, companies such as Malayan Cement Bhd, Econpile Holdings Bhd and Engtex Group Bhd could benefit from Gamuda’s significant project pipeline.
Finally, Duopharma Biotech Bhd is poised for a breakout after the company announced stronger FY2025 results and secured RM665.8 mil in government contracts.
The FBM KLCI closed on a firmer footing. However, technical indicators suggest momentum remains weak with the MACD histogram still in the negative region and the RSI hovering below 50.
Resistance is seen around 1,733-1,738 with support at 1,698-1,703. – March 9, 2026
