KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 (Bernama) -- The benchmark index for Bursa Malaysia rebounded at midday on bargain hunting in selected heavyweights, led by utilities stocks, although market breadth remained negative.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 10.18 points to 1,654.14 from Tuesday’s close of 1,643.96.
The key index, which opened 2.53 points higher at 1,646.49, moved between 1,645.03 and 1,656.87 during the session.
Utilities stocks led the gains, with Tenaga Nasional surging 32 sen to RM13.04, Petronas Gas rising 20 sen to RM17.38 and YTL Corporation edging up one sen to RM2.30.
On the broader market, decliners outnumbered gainers 603 to 350, while 521 counters were unchanged, 1,381 untraded and 95 suspended.
Turnover stood at 1.92 billion shares worth RM1.49 billion.
In a note, Apex Securities Bhd said the energy sector, one of only two sectors to gain, could give back some of its gains after Brent crude oil prices eased overnight amid continued US-Iran talks.
At the time of writing, Brent crude rose 0.48 per cent to US$103.08 a barrel.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank rose five sen to RM10.04, Public Bank eased two sen to RM4.70, CIMB added one sen to RM7.79 and IHH Healthcare climbed three sen to RM7.90.
In active trade, Zetrix AI was flat at 16.5 sen, V.S Industry strengthened 1.5 sen to 25 sen, Gamuda recovered 20 sen to RM5.18, while Jaks Resources and Tanco rose half a sen each to 19.5 sen and 16.5 sen respectively.
Among the top gainers, Nestle rose RM1.20 to RM90.12, United Plantations gained 28 sen to RM31.60, UMS Integration added 20 sen to RM8.81, Ayer edged up 18 sen to RM7.78 and Allianz Malaysia advanced 14 sen to RM21.
Hengyuan Refining led the decliners, falling 57 sen to RM3.77. Trading in the counter was suspended for the rest of the day after its last done price breached the prescribed price limit.
Malaysian Pacific Industries followed, shedding 44 sen to RM40.36, while Eurospan fell 25 sen to RM2.99, Kuala Lumpur Kepong slipped 22 sen to RM22.28 and MI Technovation lost 17 sen to RM5.22.
On the index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index fell 48.14 points to 17,561.95, while the FBM Emas Index rose 40.32 points to 12,305.79 and the FBM Top 100 Index gained 46.83 points to 12,098.37.
The FBM Emas Shariah Index edged up 69.56 points to 12,197.17, while the FBM ACE Index shed 33.86 points to 5,494.72.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index rose 0.32 of a point to 181.18, while the Energy Index fell 18.32 points to 850.38. The Financial Services Index gained 10.75 points to 19,271.60, while the Plantation Index added 16.55 points to 9,232.89.
-- BERNAMA