Selling pressure continues on Bursa

PETALING JAYA: Bursa Malaysia saw continued selling pressure yesterday while the ringgit continued to strengthen.

At 5.30pm, the ringgit was quoted at 3.9910 against the greenback. The local unit opened higher against the US dollar in the morning.

Kenanga Research said the ringgit would remain on a strong footing and gradually appreciate against the US dollar and other major currencies, given the economy’s solid current account surplus, benign inflation outlook and prudent fiscal position.

“Nevertheless, we may also see a more volatile ringgit, mainly affected by the anticipated three rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve this year.

“Hence, we may see the US dollar-ringgit pair trading in a wider range of between 3.95 and 4.10 in the first quarter this year,” the research house said.

At 5pm yesterday, the stock market index was down 6.04 to 1,816.88 points. In the broader market, losers thumped gainers 781 to 265, while 363 counters remained unchanged. About 4.01 billion shares, valued at RM 3.04bil, changed hands.

Dealers said the performance of the benchmark index was in line with the overnight retreat in the US market and market sentiment remained muted as there was a lack of fresh leads.

Elsewhere, Hong Kong’s benchmark stock index rose for the 13th consecutive session yesterday. The Hang Seng index was up 46.67 points, or 0.15%, at 31,120.39 at the close.