Bursa Malaysia ends flat as caution prevails amid geopolitical jitters
KUALA LUMPUR: The local bourse ended little changed on Wednesday as investors stayed on the sidelines amid cautious regional sentiment and geopolitical concerns.
The FBM KLCI closed nearly flat at 1,511.95, inching up 0.31 point or 0.02%, after touching an intraday high of 1,512.96.
Market breadth was negative, with 488 losers outpacing 361 gainers, while 503 counters were unchanged. Turnover stood at 2.43 billion shares worth RM1.8bil.
Westports was the top gainer on Bursa Malaysia, rising 20 sen to RM5.50. Allianz added 16 sen to RM19.06, PETRONAS Dagangan gained 16 sen to RM21.36, while Apollo climbed 14 sen to RM6.39.
Among the losers, PPB Group slid 38 sen to RM10.38, Hong Leong Industries fell 18 sen to RM13.30, Malaysian Pacific Industries lost 16 sen to RM19.64 and BAT declined 12 sen to RM4.80.
Dealers said investors are expected to remain cautious, with market sentiment likely to stay subdued in the near term amid concerns over rising tensions in the Middle East.
They added that investors will also be watching for signals on the direction of U.S. interest rates.
On the forex market, the ringgit slipped 0.18% against the US dollar to 4.2508 but edged up 0.05% against the Singapore dollar to 3.3087.
Around the region, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.9%, South Korea's Kospi gained 0.74% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed down 1.12%.
China's CSI 300 Index rose 0.12% while the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.04%.
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