The Malaysia stock market has tracked higher in consecutive trading days, advancing almost 15 points or 1 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,500-point plateau and it’s likely to add to its winnings again on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on rising oil prices and optimism on the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The KLCI finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, plantation stocks and glove makers.
For the day, the index added 7.71 points or 0.52 percent to finish at 1,504.44 after trading between 1,498.53 and 1,514.52. Volume was 4.587 billion shares worth 3.097 billion ringgit. There were 654 decliners and 433 gainers.
Among the actives, Axiata fell 0.26 percent, while CIMB Group jumped 1.33 percent, Dialog Group rallied 0.78 percent, Digi.com lost 0.47 percent, Genting sank 1.27 percent, Genting Malaysia tumbled 1.42 percent, Hartalega Holdings surged 3.43 percent, IHH Healthcare and Tenaga Nasional both added 0.52 percent, IOI Corporation spiked 1.37 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong accelerated 1.34 percent, Maybank collected 0.37 percent, Maxis gained 0.23 percent, MRDIY skyrocketed 5.26 percent, Petronas Chemicals was up 0.13 percent, PPB Group rose 0.22 percent, Press Metal perked 1.21 percent, RHB Capital advanced 0.76 percent, Sime Darby gathered 0.95 percent, Sime Darby Plantations soared 1.46 percent, Top Glove climbed 1.07 percent and MISC, Telekom Malaysia and Public Bank were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street has been mixed all week and Wednesday was no exception. All three of the major averages opened to the upside and the Dow and S&P stayed that way to hit fresh record closing highs; the NASDAQ quickly headed south and finished in the red.
The Dow jumped 220.30 points or 0.62 percent to finish at 35,484.97, while the NASDAQ dipped 22.95 points or 0.16 percent to close at 14,765.13 and the S&P rose 10.95 points or 0.25 percent to end at 4,447.70.
The mixed performance came after the Labor Department’s highly anticipated inflation reading was not bad as some had feared, slowing to 0.5 percent from 0.9 percent in June – suggesting that the central bank may not be in a hurry to scale back stimulus.
The recent resurgence in coronavirus cases may also weigh on the economy, leading the Fed to put off tapering plans and allowing stocks to continue to climb to record highs.
Crude oil futures settled higher on Wednesday, recovering well after an early setback, after the Biden administration said it would not ask U.S. oil producers to hike output. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended up $0.96 or 1.4 percent at $69.25 a barrel.
Market Analysis
Malaysia Stock Market Tipped To Extend Winning Streak
2021-08-11 23:30:29
