KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened easier on Friday, following the lead of Wall Street's losses overnight.
At 9.10am, the FBM KLCI slid 10.89 points, or 0.67% to 1,613.39. It opened 4.94 points lower at 1,619.31.
There were 53 gainers and 671 losers on the broader market, while 230 counters were unchanged.
Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.21%, to 40,347.97, the S&P 500 lost 1.37% to 5,446.68 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.30% to 17,194.15.
Apex Securities anticipates the local bourse to remain flat due to negative sentiment from the global market.
It said the lower liners will likely move similarly to the key index due to tepid trading appetite.
Apex said today’s key economic focus would be the US unemployment rate and factory orders.
“Given the rise of volatility risk in the market, we advocate investors turn defensive and focus onto gold-related stocks on renewed Fed cut bets,” it added.
Inter-Pacific Research continues to see near-term market conditions staying unsettled heading into the weekend as the still low buying interest is tempering the upside potential.
The research house noted that while the odds of the U.S. trimming interest rates in September have increased, the FBM KLCI continues to falter due to the already high levels resulting from strong year-to-date gains.
Additionally, the already fair valuations could make it more difficult to achieve further gains.
“Therefore, the insipid conditions look to continue as the key index attempts to firm up a base around the psychological 1,600 level with the recent high levels remaining a challenge to clear, unless there are improvements to the FBM KLCI’s fundamentals.
“For now, the supports are pegged at 1,620 and 1,615 points while the hurdles are at 1,631 points and the 1,637-1,638 levels respectively,” it said.
Malaysian Pacific Industries
slid 80 sen to RM36.30, PIE Industrial fell 23 sen to RM5.57, F&N lost 20 sen to RM30.22 and Pentamaster declined 18 sen to RM19.20.
Among the gainers, Khind gained eight sen to RM2.78, Genting Plantations added four sen to RM5.74, Itmax rose three sen to RM3.26 and Signature International climbed two sen to RM1.32.
