FBM KLCI MAY TRADE IN TIGHT RANGE NEXT WEEK
Market activity likely to be curtailed by Aidiladha holiday, says analyst
THE FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) is expected to trade within a tight range of 1,515 to 1,535 points next week as investors keep their eyes on Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 cases.
Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd economist Adam Mohamed Rahim said he was not expecting much trading activity during the holiday-shortened week due to the Hari Raya Aidiladha celebration on Tuesday.
The FBM KLCI added 1.66 points to close at 1,522.5 yesterday. The Bursa Malaysia Construction Index advanced the most among other sectoral indices after advancing one per cent.
Digi.com Bhd, which reported improved financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, was among the top performers after gaining 11 sen, or 2.66 per cent, to close at RM4.25 yesterday.
The telecommunication company
attributed its higher earnings to lower net finance charges.
Pharmaniaga Bhd slipped 14.5 sen, or 13.94 per cent, to 89.5 sen yesterday after the government announced it would stop using the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine.
Meanwhile, Adam said Malaysia’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) to be released next Friday would determine if inflationary pressures had remained high.
The CPI is an important component considered by Bank Negara Malaysia when determining
the monetary policy.
Externally, he said reports that a compromise was reached between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates allowing the latter to raise its oil production to 3.65 million barrels per day from April next year would provide some comfort for the oil and gas counters on Bursa.
Meanwhile, he said the ringgit was expected to trade between 4.19 and 4.21 against the US dollar next week due to the causality effect that Brent crude oil has on the local currency.