Malaysia Stock Market Poised To Extend Winning Streak

The Malaysia stock market has climbed higher in three straight sessions, advancing almost 40 points or 2.7 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,550-point plateau and it’s looking at another green light for Wednesday’s trade.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is flat to slightly higher, again supported by oil and technology stocks. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourse were slightly higher and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished sharply higher on Tuesday with gains across the board – especially from the financials, plantations and glove makers.

For the day, the index spiked 30.94 points or 2.03 percent to finish at the daily high of 1,553.37 after moving as low as 1,522.81. Volume was 4.449 billion shares worth 3.150 billion ringgit. There were 811 gainers and 319 decliners.

Among the actives, Axiata increased 0.25 percent, while CIMB Group accelerated 3.21 percent, Dialog Group jumped 2.69 percent, Genting gained 1.04 percent, Genting Malaysia rallied 2.69 percent, Hartalega Holdings advanced 1.58 percent, IHH Healthcare strengthened 1.75 percent, IOI Corporation spiked 3.73 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong gathered 2.09 percent, Maybank collected 1.84 percent, Maxis and PPB Group both were up 0.22 percent, MISC added 1.18 percent, MRDIY tumbled 1.81 percent, Petronas Chemicals shed 0.50 percent, Press Metal and Tenaga Nasional both rose 1.01 percent, Public Bank surged 4.31 percent, RHB Capital perked 1.69 percent, Sime Darby soared 4.17 percent, Sime Darby Plantations skyrocketed 6.39 percent, Telekom Malaysia improved 0.51 percent, Top Glove climbed 2.39 percent and Digi.com was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as the major averages opened solidly higher on Tuesday but faded as the day progressed, finally finishing with small gains.

The Dow added 30.55 points or 0.09 percent to finish at 35,366.26, while the NASDAQ climbed 77.15 points or 0.52 percent to end at 15,019.80 and the S&P 500 rose 6.70 points or 0.15 percent to close at 4,486.23.

The higher open on Wall Street came hopes that the FDA’s approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine could boost vaccination rates in the U.S. and spur economic growth.

In economic news, the Commerce Department reported a rebound in U.S. new home sales in July.

Investors also are looking ahead to a highly-anticipated speech by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell during the virtual Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday for more clarity on the Fed’s tapering timeline.

Crude oil prices moved higher Tuesday for a second straight session as concerns for energy demand eased signs of falling coronavirus infections in China, India and some other countries. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October ended up $1.90 or 3 percent at $67.54 a barrel.