BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Berjaya Research
The FBM KLCI chalked up marginal gains on Friday after trading largely directionless during the session as investors stayed cautious ahead of the US-Iran weekend negotiations.
Trading activity thinned to 2.89 billion shares from 3.05 billion shares in the previous session, reflecting the wait-and-see sentiment among market participants.
Nevertheless, market breadth turned positive with 663 advancers outpacing 400 decliners, implying selective bargain hunting emerging within the broader market.
Going forward, the FBM KLCI could continue to trade within a downward bias consolidation range as the sticky US inflation data may reinforce expectations of a more hawkish monetary policy stance and could sap global risk appetite.
Also, without any developments from the US–Iran negotiations over the weekend, it could further provide volatility to global markets.
Nevertheless, improving market breadth and emerging signs of bargain hunting could provide some cushion towards further downsides, if any.
Technically, the FBM KLCI has gapped up and managed to defend most of its intraday gains.
The extended consolidation could see the local bourse continuing is downward bias trend with the 1,695 points serving as the immediate resistance, followed by the 1,700 psychological level. Meanwhile, near-term supports remain located at the 1,673-1,660 levels.
Malacca Securities Research
Amid the unresolved Middle East conflict, we believe the local bourse will start the week on a softer note.
The US announcement of a blockade over the Strait of Hormuz is expected to propel global oil prices upward as the waterway faces a “double bottleneck” from both Iran and the US.
This potentially translates into trading opportunities within the O&G (oil & gas) and chemical sectors, specifically for stocks like Dialog Group Bhd, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd, TMK Chemical Bhd and Cropmate Bhd.
Sentiment should also bolster the plantation sector as the market may pivot toward biofuels as a partial substitute for fossil fuels, thus benefiting companies such as SD Guthrie Bhd, Sarawak Oil Palms Bhd and TSH Resources Bhd.
For a defensive strategy, investors may favour bank stocks or REITs.
Although the FBM KLCI rebounded on Friday, its technical indicators are still showing weaker momentum at this current juncture with the MACD histogram trading below zero while the RSI is still below 50.
Resistance is seen around 1,706-1,711 with support at 1,671-1,676. – April 13, 2026
