BELOW are excerpts of viewpoints from two selected research houses on what investors can expect in the day ahead:
Inter-Pacific Research
The FBM KLCI continues on its ascend yesterday, extending its gains for a second session as selective buying interest persists to lift the benchmark index to its highest level since June 2022.
Conditions were mixed in the morning session but foreign buying interest emerged in the afternoon session to provide the lift as market players digested the country’s below expectation GDP (gross domestic product).
The broader market was mixed which left market breadth on the negative side for the day.
Despite the already toppish market conditions, the FBM KLCI has stayed relatively resilient of late, aided by the continuous foreign buying interest and rotational interest on selective index linked stocks.
For now, there are few signs of the buying interest abating and the near-term upsides could look to prolong.
This is despite the availability of few domestic impetuses but with little selling pressure, the key index should be able to solidify its position above the 1,500 level.
Although there could be further upsides ahead, the gains may become more modest due to the slightly overbought conditions with the targets now raised to 1,540-1,543 points, followed by the next psychological level at around the 1,550 level.
On the other hand, the supports are at 1,527-1,533 and 1,520 points respectively.
Malacca Securities Research
The FBM KLCI added strength with the buying support observed within Genting Bhd and banking heavyweights.
Meanwhile, the US stock markets were closed for the President’s Day public holiday. This week, the market will be monitoring the (i) FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meeting minutes; (ii) unemployment claims; and (iii) the US PMI (Purchasing Managers’ Index) data on Thursday Feb 22).
On the local front, we expect continuation of buying interest on the broader market ahead of the earnings season.
On the commodity market, Brent crude price traded firmer above the US$83/barrel mark as concerns over the tensions in the Middle East persisted while the FCPO (crude palm oil futures) prices stayed above RM3,800/metric tonne for the third session.
The FBM KLCI ended higher on an upward trend. The technical readings on the key index were positive with the MACD Histogram extending another positive bar while the RSI maintains above the 50 level.
The resistance is envisaged around 1,540-1,550 while the support is set at 1,500-1,510. – Feb 20, 2024
