Malaysia Stock Market Due For Support On Friday

The Malaysia stock market has moved lower in three straight sessions, slipping almost 8 points or 0.6 percent in that span. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just beneath the 1,425-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is flat to higher, ahead of closely watched employment data from the U.S. later today. The European and U.S. bourses saw mild upside and the Asian markets figure to follow suit.

The KLCI finished slightly lower on Thursday following losses from the telecoms and mixed performances from the financials and plantations.

For the day, the index shed 4.66 points or 0.33 percent to finish at 1,424.89 after trading between 1,416.67 and 1,431.32.

Among the actives, Axiata tumbled 1.64 percent, while CIMB Group declined 0.94 percent, Dialog Group plunged 1.65 percent, Digi.com retreated 0.93 percent, Genting slumped 0.85 percent, Genting Malaysia shed 0.38 percent, IHH Healthcare rose 0.17 percent, INARI tanked 1.61 percent, IOI Corporation stumbled 1.32 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong added 0.19 percent, Maybank fell 0.12 percent, MISC perked 0.14 percent, MRDIY dropped 0.61 percent, PPB Group sank 0.60 percent, Press Metal climbed 1.02 percent, Public Bank lost 0.25 percent, RHB Capital gained 0.18 percent, Sime Darby advanced 0.46 percent, Telekom Malaysia and AMMB Holdings both skidded 0.81 percent, Tenaga Nasional eased 0.11 percent and Maxis, Sime Darby Plantations, Petronas Chemicals and QL Resources were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages shook off early weakness to move higher and end in the green.

The Dow perked 2.57 points or 0.01 percent to finish at 33,485.29, while the NASDAQ jumped 91.09 points or 0.76 percent to end at 12,087.96 and the S&P 500 rose 14.64 added 14.64 points or 0.36 percent to close at 4,105.02.

The markets are closed on Good Friday; for the holiday-shortened week, the Dow climbed by 0.6 percent, while the S&P 500 eased 0.1 percent and the tech-heavy NASDAQ slumped 1.1 percent.

The early weakness on Wall Street reflected lingering concerns about the economic outlook following disappointing data. The Labor Department noted a drop in initial jobless claims last week.

Selling pressure waned shortly after the start of trading, however, as traders seem reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of the Labor Department’s more closely watched employment report later today.

Crude oil futures settled slightly higher Thursday and posted gains for a third straight week, buoyed by OPEC’s decision to cut production. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $0.09 at $80.70 a barrel. WTI crude rose gained more than 6 percent this week.