Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia opened higher today, tracking Wall Street's overnight positive performance, boosted by improved economic data and quarterly earnings reports that exceeded consensus expectations. At 9.11 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 5.49 points, or 0.36 per cent, to 1,526.43 from Thursday's close of 1,520.94. The benchmark index opened 2.03 points higher at 1,522.97.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the broader market was positive, with gainers outpacing decliners 260 to 95, while 267 counters were unchanged, 1,836 untraded, and eight suspended. Turnover stood at 187.29 million shares worth RM128.20 million.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng noted that the United States' 10-year yield eased slightly to 4.453 per cent. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index ended marginally lower as traders awaited fresh catalysts, he told BERNAMA.
In Malaysia, the FBM KLCI rebounded to above the 1,520 mark, possibly due to stock accumulation by local institutions following a downtrend. Thong Pak Leng added that the index is expected to hover within the 1,515-1,525 range today.
Among heavyweight counters, Maybank and IHH Healthcare each rose by 2.0 sen to RM9.55 and RM6.55, respectively. Public Bank increased by 1.0 sen to RM4.26, CIMB climbed 7.0 sen to RM6.57, while Tenaga Nasional fell by 4.0 sen to RM13.74.
In active trade, ACE debutant Enproserve Group rose by 5.5 sen to 29.5 sen. NexG and Zetrix AI both increased by half-a-sen to 49.5 sen and 94 sen, respectively. KHPT added 1.5 sen to 13.5 sen, and Gamuda climbed 12 sen to RM5.27.
On the broader index board, gains were recorded across several indices. The FBM Emas Index advanced 49.94 points to 11,475.11, the FBMT 100 Index climbed 49.74 points to 11,238.11, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index appreciated by 48.50 points to 11,522.47. The FBM 70 Index jumped 114.12 points to 16,658.16, while the FBM ACE Index edged up by 10.39 points to 4,646.37.
By sector, the Financial Services Index increased by 45.47 points to 17,347.82, the Energy Index rose by 2.16 points to 741.27, the Plantation Index gained 16.62 points to 7,447.16, and the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up by 0.47 points to 154.46.