Kuala Lumpur: Bursa Malaysia rebounded from previous losses to open higher, driven by renewed buying interest in selected heavyweights and aligning with positive momentum in the regional market, as noted by an analyst. At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose by 3.93 points to reach 1,546.67, up from the prior close of 1,542.74. The benchmark index had initially opened 2.25 points higher at 1,544.99, with a turnover of 156.16 million shares valued at RM77.70 million. Market breadth was positive, with 202 gainers surpassing 133 losers, while 251 counters remained unchanged, 1,781 were untraded, and 10 were suspended.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd mentioned in a note today that the local bourse is expected to rebound further, following the positive performance in the US. The Bursa Finance index has seen an 8.0 percent rise since the April 9 low, bolstered by a 100 basis points cut in the Statutory Reserve Requirement, injecting approximately RM19 billion in liquidity into the banking system. Malacca Securities suggested traders might seek trading opportunities in lagging banking stocks such as Alliance and AmBank. Additionally, the artificial intelligence theme has regained interest due to a potential revision of the Biden administration's chip restriction act, which could boost trading in the construction, utility, and technology sectors.
Among major stocks, Maybank increased by 4.0 sen to RM9.92, while Public Bank and CIMB each improved by 1.0 sen to RM4.46 and RM6.88, respectively. However, Tenaga Nasional decreased by 2.0 sen to RM14.28, and IHH Healthcare fell by 3.0 sen to RM6.98. In active trade, Sapura Energy and Magma remained flat at 4.5 sen and 35.5 sen, respectively, while Lotte Chemical rose by 7.0 sen to 61.5 sen, and SFP Tech gained half-a-sen to 22 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index increased by 28.47 points to 11,520.28, the FBMT 100 Index rose by 28.95 points to 11,285.98, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index climbed 23.37 points to 11,456.70. The FBM 70 Index advanced 43.04 points to 16,309.07, though the FBM ACE Index declined by 14 points to 4,646.86. Across sectors, the Financial Services Index rose by 47.67 points to 18,102.56, the Industrial Products and Services Index increased by 0.67 of-a-point to 153.68, the Energy Index gained 2.51 points to 688.95, and the Plantation Index added 12.89 points to 7,213.92.