KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia started Tuesday morning with a mixed tone, as the key index dipped amid a lack of catalysts. 

At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 3.48 points to 1,534.06 from Monday's close of 1,537.54. 

The benchmark index started the day 1.48 points lower at 1,536.06.

On the broader market, gainers outnumbered decliners 228 to 214, while 304 counters were unchanged.

Turnover stood at 315.24 million units worth RM134.58 million.  

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI closed in negative territory amid a choppy session dragged by the weak regional performances as the US interest rates debate prolonged. 

Nonetheless, he said there remains some accumulation activities on the blue chips that propped the benchmark index above the day low. 

"We believe the 1,530 will act as the immediate support at the moment thus expect the index to hover within the 1,535-1,545 amid the lacklustre sentiment," he told Business Times. 

Meanwhile, Thong noted that Wall Street ended lower as traders took a breather following a strong rally recently. 

He said notwithstanding this, sentiment is turning cautious as many deemed US equities overvalued attributed to the overextended rally. 

As such, he said the Dow Jones Industrial (DJI) Average lost 162 points while the Nasdaq closed 44 points lower with the US 10-year yield moderated to 4.249 per cent. 

He added that n Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index (HSI) ended the day marginally lower amid concerns on corporate earnings and the volatile Chinese Yuan against the US dollar.

https://www.nst.com.my/business/corporate/2024/03/1030587/bursa-malaysia-opens-mixed-key-index-dips-lack-catalysts