KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI ended the morning session on a firm note, supported by gains in selected financial services counters, amid the weak sentiment on regional bourses.
At 12.30 pm, the benchmark index added 5.78 points, or 0.4% to 1,460.61.
There were 425 gainers, 355 losers, and 432 counters traded unchanged on the Bursa Malaysia. Turnover stood at 2.6 billion shares valued at RM1.01bil.
Among the banks, Maybank added four sen to RM9.17, Public Bank gained one sen to RM4.26, CIMB rose five sen to RM5.70 and AmBank rose six sen to RM3.74.
Nestle gained 30 sen to RM130.20, PETRONAS Dagangan added 10 sen to RM22.80, MR DIY rose eight sen to RM1.53 and Maxis climbed seven sen to RM4.12.
On the broader market, Heineken gained eight sen to RM23.64, PIE rose eight sen to RM2.96, Batu Kawan fell 26 sen to RM19.84 and Malaysian Pacific Industries slid 10 sen to RM28.30.
“With the anticipation of a slightly hawkish tone from the Fed, the overall broader market could take a breather, despite the ongoing positive catalysts from the NIMP and NETR blueprints,” Malacca Securities said.
StarPicks
Indulge in tradition and taste
Nevertheless, It favours the O&G sector because of the stronger Brent oil prices.
Malacca Securities said traders may watch out for value and defensive counters which pay decent dividend yields under this uncertain environment.
“The FBM KLCI had formed a bearish bar after hitting the resistance around 1,460-1,465 for the third time. The technical indicators are weakening, but staying above the positive region; the RSI is above 50, while the MACD Histogram extended another positive bar.
“Resistance is located around 1,465-1,470, while the support is set around 1,430-1,440,” it added.
In regional markets, China's main market fell 0.34% to 3,143.62 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng eased 0.82% to 18,306.24.
Japan's Nikkei 225 added 0.62% to 33,240.11 and South Korea's Kospi fell 0.54% to 2,568.12.