Malaysia Stock Market May Add To Its Winnings

The Malaysia stock market has moved higher in three straight sessions, gathering almost 30 points or 2 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just beneath the 1,425-point plateau and it’s expected to extend its gains on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on easing concerns over the health of the banking sector. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses figure to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished modestly higher on Thursday following gains from the financials and telecoms, while the plantations were mixed.

For the day, the index rose 4.26 points or 0.30 percent to finish at 1,4224.61 after trading between 1,415.10 and 1,425.37.

Among the actives, Axiata perked 0.33 percent, while CIMB Group climbed 0.75 percent, Dialog Group rose 0.43 percent, Digi.com gained 0.43 percent, Genting improved 0.66 percent, Genting Malaysia rallied 1.15 percent, IHH Healthcare fell 0.17 percent, INARI accelerated 1.24 percent, IOI Corporation soared 1.61 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong and Petronas Dagangan both sank 0.38 percent, Maybank strengthened 0.82 percent, Maxis surged 1.74 percent, MISC spiked 1.39 percent, MRDIY plummeted 7.27 percent, Petronas Chemicals skyrocketed 3.18 percent, PPB Group tumbled 0.93 percent, Press Metal jumped 1.03 percent, Public Bank collected 0.51 percent, RHB Capital added 0.54 percent, Sime Darby plunged 1.82 percent, Sime Darby Plantations advanced 0.71 percent, Telekom Malaysia increased 0.61 percent, Tenaga Nasional was up 0.44 percent and Hong Leong Financial and Hong Leong Bank were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened sharply higher on Thursday, faded as the day progressed but still ended well in positive territory.

The Dow jumped 141.43 points or 0.43 percent to finish at 32,859.03, while the NASDAQ gained 87.24 points or 0.73 percent to close at 12,013.47 and the S&P 500 added 23.02 points or 0.57 percent to end at 4,050.83.

The continued strength on Wall Street came as concerns about turmoil in the banking sector continued to ease after sparking substantial volatility on Wall Street in recent weeks.

Traders also looked ahead to today’s report on personal income and spending, which includes a reading on inflation said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve and could have an impact on the outlook for interest rates.

In economic news, the Labor Department noted a modest increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week. Also, the Commerce Department said the U.S. economy grew slightly less than estimated in Q4 of 2022.

Crude oil prices rose sharply Thursday on easing concerns over turmoil in the banking sector and supply disruptions in Turkey. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $1.40 or 1.9 percent at $74.37 a barrel.