Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Thursday but shifted into negative territory in early trade as investors opted to lock in profits following recent gains. At 9.15 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) decreased by 0.79 of a point to 1,747.38, down from Wednesday's close of 1,748.17. The benchmark index had initially opened 1.48 points higher at 1,749.65.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the broader market saw decliners outnumbering advancers 218 to 179, while 356 counters remained unchanged, 1,990 were untraded, and 12 were suspended. The turnover was recorded at 233.76 million shares valued at RM119.06 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd's vice-president of equity research, Thong Pak Leng, noted that the local bourse ended higher on Wednesday, driven by stronger investor sentiment amid easing geopolitical tensions, reduced crude oil prices, and an improving global risk appetite. Continued buying in heavyweight stocks, along with Malaysia's resilient economic outlook, is expected to provide support for the local bourse. However, some profit-taking is anticipated after recent gains, with the broader market trend remaining constructive. The FBM KLCI is expected to trade within the 1,740-1,760 range for the day.
In the United States, stocks ended mixed overnight following a strong rally as investors processed corporate earnings from companies such as SpaceX and AMD, while also assessing remarks by US President Donald Trump about a potential agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as early as Wednesday.
Among the major stocks, Maybank stayed unchanged at RM10.82, CIMB Group increased by one sen to RM8.02, IHH Healthcare rose by two sen to RM8.34, while Public Bank and Tenaga Nasional both fell by two sen to RM5.25 and RM14.64, respectively.
Regarding active stocks, JCY International gained three sen to 44 sen, Steel Hawk increased by half a sen to 18.5 sen, and Zetrix AI advanced 1.5 sen to 70.5 sen. In contrast, VS Industry slipped one sen to 23 sen, while Genetec Technology remained unchanged at 38 sen.
Among gainers, Nestle rose by 50 sen to RM103.00, and Petronas Gas went up by 16 sen to RM17.60. Theta Edge and Tradeplus Shariah Gold Tracker both gained 13 sen to 68 sen and RM5.38, respectively, while Tong Herr Resources increased by seven sen to RM1.87.
Conversely, Malaysian Pacific Industries, Vitrox Corp, and KESM Industries led the losers, each shedding eight sen to RM46.86, RM9.02, and RM4.28, respectively. Kelington Group lost six sen to RM8.69, and Petronas Chemicals fell by five sen to RM4.47.
In terms of broader indices, the FBM Mid 70 Index lost 22.59 points to 18,255.37, the FBM ACE Index fell 9.39 points to 5,029.87, the FBM Emas Index eased 8.51 points to 12,894.00, and the FBM Top 100 Index slipped 8.31 points to 12,728.63, while the FBM Emas Shariah Index edged up 4.87 points to 12,737.50.
By sector, the Financial Services Index declined 21.43 points to 20,547.73, the Plantation Index fell 4.78 points to 9,505.92, the Energy Index eased 0.94 of a point to 763.29, and the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 0.59 of a point to 189.65.