Kuala lumpur: Bursa Malaysia's key index ended lower today, aligning with most regional markets, as investors exercised caution ahead of the United States Federal Reserve's (Fed) forthcoming policy announcement.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) began its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday, concluding today. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) decreased by 3.17 points, or 0.20 percent, settling at 1,611.00 from Tuesday's close of 1,614.17. The benchmark index opened 3.13 points lower at 1,611.04, dipped to its lowest at 1,606.11 during the morning session, and recovered to its intraday high of 1,612.50 in late trading.

The broader market showed a positive trend, with gainers surpassing decliners 515 to 472. Meanwhile, 608 counters remained unchanged, 1,154 were untraded, and 12 were suspended. Turnover rose to 3.86 billion units worth RM2.21 billion from 2.66 billion units worth RM2.09 billion on Tuesday.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng noted that the FBM KLCI closed slightly lower as investors sought value opportunities, especially among small-cap counters. He mentioned, "The benchmark index hovered around its first support level at about 1,610, indicating a cautious approach among investors."

Thong emphasized that the market's medium-term outlook remains stable, with the 1,600-1,610 levels serving as crucial support that often attracts bargain hunters. He added, "If buying interest resurfaces near that level, the index could stabilize and potentially recover as broader market sentiment improves."

In the heavyweights category, Maybank rose by two sen to RM10.12, Public Bank remained unchanged at RM4.37, CIMB Group fell by three sen to RM7.82, IHH Healthcare dropped 13 sen to RM8.40, while Tenaga Nasional increased by four sen to RM12.74.

On the most active list, Borneo Oil stayed unchanged at half-a-sen, Zetrix AI gained 2.5 sen to 83 sen, Velesto Energy rose 1.5 sen to 27 sen, Tanco Holdings increased by two sen to RM1.16, while Main Market newcomer Lac Med added 1.5 sen to 76.5 sen.

Top gainers included Nestle, which advanced RM3.30 to RM115.00, DKSH rose 63 sen to RM5.90, Malaysian Pacific Industries added 30 sen to RM32.18, Allianz Malaysia increased by 30 sen to RM19.96, and Dutch Lady improved by 28 sen to RM30.28.

Among the top losers, Hong Leong Industries decreased by 28 sen to RM15.72, United Plantations dropped 24 sen to RM28.60, Far East Holdings fell 20 sen to RM4.15, Fraser and Neave eased 20 sen to RM35.00, and ITMAX slipped 11 sen to RM4.53.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index fell 16.29 points to 11,916.91, the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 5.79 points to 11,788.88, the FBMT 100 Index declined 19.71 points to 11,701.27, the FBM 70 Index dropped 13.43 points to 16,651.07, and the FBM ACE Index decreased by 23.31 points to 4,730.98.

In terms of sectors, the Plantation Index fell 18.75 points to 8,062.83, and the Financial Services Index decreased 11.77 points to 18,918.40. Meanwhile, the Industrial Products and Services Index rose by 0.51 of a point to 166.99, and the Energy Index improved by 5.50 points to 757.43.

The Main Market volume grew to 1.63 billion units worth RM1.81 billion from 1.14 billion units worth RM1.85 billion on Tuesday. Warrants turnover increased to 1.89 billion units worth RM268.63 million compared to 1.21 billion units worth RM141.42 million previously. The ACE Market volume rose to 336.40 million units valued at RM125.36 million against 299.51 million units valued at RM96.30 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 179.60 million shares traded on the Main Market, with industrial products and services at 431.42 million, construction at 89.23 million, technology at 255.78 million, financial services at 42.25 million, property at 185.10 million, plantation at 39.38 million, real estate investment trusts at 14.56 million, closed-end fund at 3,500, energy at 203.25 million, healthcare at 121.30 million, telecommunications and media at 23.69 million, transportation and logistics at 31.88 million, utilities at 21.65 million, and business trusts at 5,100.