Intra-day low finish

BURSA Malaysia closed at an intra-day low yesterday on nervousness over the direction of US economic and foreign policies, leaving the local bourse in the red throughout the day, dealers said. The FBM KLCI shed 11.79 points to 1,845.27. Market breadth was negative as losers led gainers by 513 to 410 with 402 counters unchanged, 571 untraded and 32 others suspended.

Among the heavyweights, Maybank fell 8 sen to RM10.36, CIMB and IHH Healthcare were 2 sen lower each at RM7.22 and RM6.06, respectively.

Tenaga Nasional rose 2 sen to RM15.66 and Petronas Chemicals increased 5 sen to RM8.15. Public Bank were flat at RM23.00.

FXTM Research analyst Lukman Otunuga said investors started yesterday’s trading session with caution after the sudden dismissal of US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson stimulated fears of rising US protectionism.

“Asian stock markets ventured into the negative territory during early trading, following overnight losses on Wall Street. Although shares in Europe held steady, thanks to dovish comments from Mario Draghi, an absence of risk appetite could result in further downside pressure.

“With reports that the US is seeking to impose tariffs on Chinese imports likely to weigh heavily on sentiment, Wall Street remains vulnerable to further losses,” he said. – Bernama