KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI ended the morning session weaker, slipping below the 1,600-point threshold as investors decided to take some money off the table.
At lunch break, the market barometer fell 4.60 points, or 0.29% to 1,596.08 after hitting an intra-morning high of 1,604.51.
There were 290 gainers, 523 losers and 471 counters traded unchanged on the Bursa Malaysia. Turnover stood at 1.7 billion shares valued at RM1.18bil.
Bank Negara announced that the country’s economy expanded by 5.3% in the third quarter of 2024.
In its advance estimate released on October 21, the Statistics Department had projected a year-on-year growth of 5.3%, slightly surpassing the median estimate of 5.1% from a Bloomberg poll.
On Bursa Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur Kepong slid 56 sen to RM21.84, Malaysian Pacific Industries
lost 40 sen to RM24.90, MISC declined 35 sen to RM7.60 and Panasonic Manufacturing fell 26 sen to RM18.22.
Among the gainers, Dutch Lady surged RM1.14 to RM30, BLD Plantation added 58 sen to RM10.96, Lysaght rose 35 sen to RM3.05 and United Plantations gained 34 sen to RM30.92.
ACE Market debutant, Metro Healthcare added one sen to 26 sen with 143.55 million shares traded.
Malacca Securities noted that, given the strong dollar environment and expectations of a slower rate-cut cycle, investors may revisit the technology and glove sectors.
The breakout in Kelington Group, driven by strong earnings and positive prospects, also presents upside potential for AI-driven stocks, it said.
