Rebound Predicted For Malaysia Stock Market

The Malaysia stock market on Thursday snapped the four-day winning streak in which it had advanced almost 60 points or 3.6 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just shy of the 1,630-point plateau although it’s expected to bounce higher again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with support expected from the oil and technology stocks. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the glove makers and mixed performances from the financials, industrials and plantations.

For the day, the index sank 10.42 points or 0.64 percent to finish at 1,629.41 after trading between 1,626.23 and 1,636.73. Volume was 9.530 billion shares worth 5.438 billion ringgit. There were 759 gainers and 435 decliners.

Among the actives, Axiata fell 0.27 percent, while CIMB Group declined 0.86 percent, Dialog Group spiked 1.22 percent, Digi.com plunged 2.12 percent, Genting dropped 0.58 percent, Genting Malaysia soared 1.29 percent, Hartalega Holdings eased 0.10 percent, IHH Healthcare gained 0.38 percent, IOI Corporation sank 0.70 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong increased 0.26 percent, Maybank was up 0.12 percent, Maxis tanked 1.91 percent, MISC skidded 1.00 percent, Petronas Chemicals rose 0.37 percent, Petronas Dagangan plummeted 3.48 percent, PPB Group shed 0.43 percent, Press Metal retreated 0.99 percent, Public Bank collected 0.46 percent, RHB Capital improved 0.18 percent, Sime Darby advanced 0.85 percent, Sime Darby Plantations surrendered 0.81 percent, Supermax tumbled 1.17 percent, Telekom Malaysia lost 0.41 percent, Tenaga Nasional added 0.75 percent and Top Glove was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as stocks opened higher and picked up steam as the day progressed, with the Dow and S&P hitting fresh record closing highs.

The Dow jumped 188.57 points or 0.58 percent to finish at 32,485.59, while the NASDAQ surged 329.84 points or 2.52 percent to end at 13,398.67 and the S&P 500 spiked 40.53 points or 1.04 percent to close at 3,939.34.

Technology stocks helped lead the way higher amid continued bargain hunting, which led to the NASDAQ’s biggest single-day gain since last November on Tuesday.

The markets also benefited from optimism about the impact of more fiscal stimulus after the House passed a $1.9 trillion relief package, which President Joe Biden has signed into law.

Buying interest may also have been generated by a report from the Labor Department showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell to a four-month low last week.

Crude oil futures moved sharply higher on Thursday, extending the rebound seen in the previous session amid optimism about the outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate jumped $1.58 or 2.45 percent to $66.02 per barrel.