Malaysia Bourse Likely To Remain Rangebound

The Malaysia stock market has moved lower in two of three trading days since the end of the four-day winning streak in which it had advanced more than 35 points or 2.3 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,590-point plateau and it figures to tick higher again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on easing concerns over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were mostly in the green and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the financial shares and telecoms, while the plantations and industrials were mixed.

For the day, the index lost 10.77 points or 0.67 percent to finish at 1,592.28 after trading between 1,592.20 and 1,605.48.

Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail plunged 2.65 percent, while Axiata dropped 0.90 percent, Celcomdigi surrendered 1.53 percent, CIMB Group tumbled 1.43 percent, Gamuda was up 0.22 percent, IHH Healthcare skidded 0.96 percent, IOI Corporation rose 0.26 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong added 0.88 percent, Maxis dipped 0.57 percent, Maybank lost 0.75 percent, MISC rallied 2.35 percent, MRDIY plummeted 4.24 percent, Nestle Malaysia stumbled 1.44 percent, Petronas Chemicals slumped 0.97 percent, Petronas Gas advanced 0.90 percent, PPB Group sank 0.85 percent, Press Metal shed 0.80 percent, Public Bank retreated 1.11 percent, QL Resources declined 1.06 percent, RHB Bank fell 0.61 percent, Sime Darby improved 0.89 percent, SD Guthrie tanked 2.21 percent, Sunway jumped 1.99 percent, Telekom Malaysia slid 0.58 percent, Tenaga Nasional eased 0.43 percent, YTL Corporation gained 0.49 percent and YTL Power and Hong Leong Financial were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is strong as the major averages opened slightly higher on Thursday but only continued to strengthen as the day progressed, ending near session highs.

The Dow jumped 342.87 points or 0.77 percent to finish at 44,711.43, while the NASDAQ surged 295.69 points or 1.50 percent to close at 19,945.64 and the S&P 500 rallied 63.10 points or 1.04 percent to end at 6,115.07.

The rally on Wall Street came after the Labor Department released its report on producer price inflation in January. While the headline number rose by more than expected, components of the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation reading were relatively tame.

The data helped to ease concerns about the outlook for interest rates after Wednesday’s consumer price numbers came in hitter than expected.

A separate report from the Labor Department showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by slightly more than expected last week.

Closer to home, Malaysia will release Q4 figures for gross domestic product and current account later today. GDP is expected to expand 4.8 percent on year, moderating from 5.3 percent in the previous three months. The current account surplus in Q3 was MYR2.20 billion.