KUALA LUMPUR: The uncertainties surrounding the country’s political landscape sent the FBM KLCI lower on Wednesday.
At closing, the 30-stock index fell 8.93 points, or 0.6% at 1,491.33 after hitting an intraday low of 1,483.73.
Selling was widespread with 685 counters closing lower as opposed to 333 gainers while 411 counters closed unchanged. Traded volumes stood at 3.66 billion shares worth RM2.53bil.
On the 30-stock FBM KLCI, there were 25 decliners to only four advancers.
Dealers said the developments on the political scene are contributing to volatility in the already weakened market sentiment. Markets were further discouraged by the spike in the daily Covid-19 cases.
In a special address this afternoon, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said he will not resign but instead will table a motion of confidence to determine the legitimacy of his position in the Dewan Rakyat in September.
Malaysia reported a record high 19,819 Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the cumulative total to 1.18 million.
Leading laggards among the KLCI component stocks were Nestle falling 70 sen to RM133, Telekom Malaysia skidding 18 sen to RM5.78 and Hong Leong Financial group shedding 14 sen to RM17.16.
Hartalega fell four sen to RM6.76 and Top Glove declined two sen to RM3.80.
Key winners on the FBM KLCI include Petronas Gas, which jumped 18 sen to RM15.90, Tenaga gained 10 sen to RM9.83, KLK added four sen to RM19.34 and Genting Malaysia climbed one sen to RM2.72.
On the broader market, Genetec rose 30 sen to RM23.30, BIG Industries
gained 26 sen to RM1.62 and PIE Industrial added 22 sen to RM3.43.
MPI fell 70 sen to RM45.10, ViTrox lost 48 sen to RM19.50 and KESM shed 30 sen to RM13.04.
Among the key regional markets:
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.21% to 27,584.08;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.88% to 26,426.55;
Shanghai Composite Index added 0.85% to 3,477.22;
Taiwan’s Taiex climbed 0.4% to 17,623.894;
South Korea’s Kospi advanced 1.34% to 3,280.38 and;
Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose 1.17% to 3,186.12 points.