KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 2 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia staged a slight recovery on Friday as bargain-hunting emerged following a recent sharp sell-off, said an analyst.
However, the rebound lacked momentum as broader Asian markets remained under pressure ahead of key United States labour market data.
At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 0.51 points, or 0.03 per cent, to 1,630.87 from Thursday’s close of 1,630.36.
The benchmark index, which opened 3.51 points higher at 1,633.87, moved between 1,630.63 and 1,640.78 throughout the trading session.
Market breadth turned positive with gainers leading losers 585 to 541, while 558 counters were unchanged, 1,089 untraded and 24 suspended.
Turnover climbed to 4.23 billion units, worth RM2.70 billion, from 3.1 billion units valued at RM2.7 billion on Thursday.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the recent sell-off had brought valuations of selected blue-chip stocks to more attractive levels, which could encourage gradual accumulation and provide some downside support.
However, he said investors continued to adopt a defensive stance as bond yields and crude oil prices remained elevated.
“As for the local bourse, we remain cautious despite today’s rebound, as external headwinds are likely to keep market volatility elevated,” Thong told Bernama.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank rose seven sen to RM10.02, Public Bank fell one sen to RM4.66, CIMB eased four sen to RM7.65, Tenaga Nasional firmed up six sen to RM12.96, and IHH Healthcare added 10 sen to RM7.80.
In active trade, Zetrix AI erased five sen to 11.5 sen, Jaks Resources remained unchanged at 18 sen, JCY International jumped 10.5 sen to 66 sen, V.S Industry ticked up two sen to 29 sen, and PUC went up one sen to 4.5 sen.
Among the top gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries rose RM1.28 to RM42.40, UWC rallied 47 sen to RM7.57, Vitrox bounced 46 sen to RM10.46, United Plantations gained 42 sen to RM31.38, and UMS Integration improved 38 sen to RM9.03.
Top losers were led by Nestle, which reduced 48 sen to RM89.52; Kuala Lumpur Kepong fell 42 sen to RM21; Enra trimmed 25.5 sen to 72.5 sen, while Allianz Malaysia and Hong Leong Bank both shaved off 20 sen to RM20.80 and RM22.64, respectively.
On the index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index rose 122.94 points to 17,481.93, the FBM Emas Index added 27.04 points to 12,170.57, and the FBM Top 100 Index advanced 24.52 points to 11,957.68.
The FBM Emas Shariah Index climbed 47.31 points to 12,060.32, and the FBM ACE Index improved 46.49 points to 5,529.46.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.79 points to 178.52, while the Energy Index shaved off 1.98 points to 833.03. The Financial Services Index eased 20.40 points to 19,040.51, and the Plantation Index grew 29.97 points to 9,056.55.
The Main Market volume increased to 2.67 billion units worth RM2.34 billion from 1.82 billion units valued at RM2.42 billion on Thursday.
Warrant turnover soared to 973.40 million units worth RM160.21 million from 618.78 million units valued at RM72.71 million previously.
The ACE Market volume eased to 593.05 million units valued at RM205.21 million from 650.13 million units worth RM226.92 million yesterday.
Meanwhile, consumer products and services counters accounted for 241.01 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (266.57 million), construction (183.37 million), technology (1.41 billion), financial services (50.26 million), property (152.37 million), plantation (19.73 million), real estate investment trusts (15.78 million), closed-end fund (214,200), energy (99.69 million), healthcare (103.06 million), telecommunications and media (28.89 million), transportation and logistics (47.35 million), utilities (46.61 million), and business trusts (119,600).
-- BERNAMA