Bursa Malaysia likely to trade in cautious mode

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia is likely to trade in cautious mode as investors will be focusing on the release of Malaysia’s first-quarter 2021 (1Q21) gross domestic product (GDP).

Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd economist Adam Mohamed Rahim said Malaysia’s 1Q GDP is expected to show a decline compared to the same period last year, to reflect the full impact of the movement control order (MCO) felt in the whole month of February this year.

“With Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays around the corner, we also expect trading to be relatively thin. Therefore, we foresee the FBM KLCI to trade within a tight range of between 1,580 and 1,600,” he told Bernama.

Throughout the week just ended, Bursa Malaysia saw volatile trading due to the release of some economic figures, including a better manufacturing data and Bank Negara Malaysia’s overnight policy rate (OPR) status quo.

On Monday, IHS Markit Malaysia Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 53.9 in April from 49.9 in March, indicating a solid improvement in the health of the manufacturing sector.

The central bank has retained its OPR at 1.75 per cent on Thursday, the same level since July 7, 2020.

For the week just ended, continuous buying support in selected healthcare, industrial products, and services counters pushed Bursa Malaysia to end the week on a positive note, with its benchmark index rising 0.58 per cent.

Adam said the FBM KLCI closed 0.6 per cent higher on Friday amid bargain hunting, especially in the rubber glove counters, which boosted the Bursa Malaysia Healthcare Index by 2.3 per cent, making it the biggest gainer, sector-wise.

“Overall sentiment was rather positive, stoked by news that China’s exports had unexpectedly accelerated, while its import growth had hit a 10year high,” he said.

On a Friday-to-Friday basis, the benchmark FBM KLCI declined 14.20 points to 1,587.45 from 1,601.65 registered last Friday.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 140.67 points easier at 11,657.62, the FBMT 100 decreased 135.78 points to 11,314.38, and FBM 70 fell 316.66 points to 15,259.48.

The FBM ACE dipped 519.49 points to 8,326.53, and the FBM Emas Shariah decreased 194.67 points to 13,077.83.

Sector-wise, the Plantation Index rose 197.80 points to 7,097.49, the Financial Services Index went down 66.63 points to 14,803.62, and the Industrial Products and Services Index was 1.18 points higher at 200.54.

The Healthcare Index fell 154.75 points to 3,158.65, the Energy Index gained 2.57 points to 899.70 and the Technology Index erased 4.49 points to 81.27. — Bernama