BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
Malaysian equities followed the lead of key global and regional indices to lose ground in yesterday’s trading due to the increased possibility of further interest rate hikes in the US.
Consequently, market conditions were lacklustre for the most part that allowed selling to dominate trades and the FBM KLCI slipping below its support levels.
In the broader market, conditions were also subdued with profit taking continuing to leave the overall market breadth on the losing side.
The downside bias looks to stay over the near term as market sentiments are still frayed, affected by the lack of domestic catalysts and the incessant fall of key global indices on interest rate concerns.
As a result, market players will still be adopting a wait-and-see stance with tomorrow’s Budget 2023 announcement to provide more clues into the direction of the country’s economy, particularly on plans to weather the ongoing economic headwinds.
In the interim, the key index is at its year-low and with sentiments still on a low gear; the level is under threat with the immediate support now pegged at the 1,460 level.
Below that, the supports are at 1,458 and the psychological 1,450 level. The resistances, meanwhile, are at the 1,470-1,473 levels, followed by 1,477 points – the 200-day Moving Average line.
Malacca Securities Research
The FBM KLCI retreated from a rebound attempt yesterday, taking cue from the bearish regional markets following the negative performance on Wall Street.
As broad-based sell-down persisted on Wall Street, investors may remain cautious while eyeing the inflation data for more clues on the interest rate directions going forward.
On the local front, all eyes shall be on the re-tabling of Budget 2023 tomorrow as well as Malaysia’s inflation rate.
Commodities-wise, Brent crude price staged a pullback towards US$80/barrel level following a substantial rise earlier after data showing crude inventory has built up while crude palm oil (CPO) price hovered above RM4,200/metric tonne.
The FBM KLCI has fallen deeper into the negative territory throughout the session. Technical indicators remained negative as the MACD Histogram is forming a rounding top formation while the RSI hovered below 50.
The key index is moving towards its support at 1,450-1,460 while resistance is pegged along 1,500-1,510. – Feb 23, 2023
