BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
The key index managed to recoup its intraday losses to end on a slightly positive note last Friday.
For most of the day, profit taking activities were prevalent following the strong gains it attained over the past few sessions with beaten down plantation stocks being among the big movers.
Market conditions were mixed as profit taking among the lower liners and broader market shares tempered some of the renewed buying.
However, traded volumes were little changed from a day earlier.
Market conditions should be able to hold steady at the start of the week and may even tip higher amid the calmer global equity market outlook.
As it is, the geopolitical risk in Eastern Europe has not escalated, hence will allow some measure of stability to equity markets in the near term.
This should also provide some impetus for the market to fortify its recent gains and allow the FBM KLCI to stay close to the 1,600 level which is its immediate target.
There continues to be buying interest, particularly from foreign funds, as the country’s economic outlook continues to show improvements that could further entice market players back to take up new positions.
Before the 1,600 points hurdle, there is an interim resistance at 1,595 points. On the other hand, the supports are at 1,590 and 1,585 points respectively.
Malacca Securities Research
The FBM KLCI finished almost unchanged as investors stayed cautious prior to the Biden-Xi call to discuss about the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
As Wall Street advanced on Friday after the talk ended without big surprises, we expect optimism to return on the regional bourses.
Meanwhile, investors may focus on the increasing prospect of an early general election in Malaysia. Commodity-wise, oil price traded above US$100/barrel amid the unresolved Russia-Ukraine tension while crude palm oil (CPO) price hovered around RM5,600/metric tonne.
The FBM KLCI erased all its earlier losses and booked marginal gains as the key index held above the daily EMA9 level. Technical indicators remained positive as the MACD Histogram moved higher above the zero level while the RSI hovered above 50.
The next resistance is pegged around 1,600-1,620 while the support is located at 1,550. – Feb 21, 2022
