BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
Malaysian equities regained traction with bargain hunting re-emerging following the recent beating. The market’s gains were also in line with recovery in regional equities which reacted positively to the slight easing of oil prices.
The technology index was among the main movers, followed by construction stocks after the announcement of the Mass Rapid Transit Line 3 (MRT 3) project. Expectedly, gainers were ahead of losers with the broader market shares also making strong headway.
There should be more gains over the near term as global equities look to bounce further on expectations that the series of US interest rate hikes will not derail ongoing economic recovery even with the Federal Reserve hinting that interest rates may reach 1.9% by end-2022.
At the same time, markets are also casting aside the geopolitical tension in Eastern Europe and high inflation rates to focus on growth prospects instead.
As such, Malaysian equities are set for further near-term gains with continuous bargain hunting on some of the beaten down stocks.
This could allow the FBM KLCI to retest the 1,580 level with the next target at the 1,585 level. On the downside, there are supports at the 1,570 points and 1,565 points respectively.
Malacca Securities Research
The FBM KLCI soared in tandem with its regional peers after China promised to roll out support measures to bolster its stock markets following the recent market turmoil.
Given the positive overnight performance on Wall Street, we expect our local market to extend its rebound with the banking sector taking the lead following the US interest rate hike.
As we are getting closer to the re-opening of borders, investors may focus on recovery theme and consumer stocks.
Commodity-wise, crude oil continued to trade below the US$100/barrel mark while crude palm oil (CPO) price hovered below RM6,000/metric tonne amid fading geopolitical tension.
The FBM KLCI staged a strong rebound, breaching above its immediate resistance at 1,570 and closing around the daily EMA9 level. Technical indicators are recovering as the MACD Histogram climbed closer towards zero while the RSI is approaching the 50 level.
The next resistance is set around 1,580 followed by 1,590, while the support is located at 1,540-1,550. – March 17, 2022
