KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened slightly higher but retreated thereafter as profit-taking started to emerge in selected heavyweights following the recent gains, dealers said.
At 9.28 am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) declined 6.53 points to 1,497.91 from Wednesday's close of 1,504.44.
The index opened 0.85 of-a-point better at 1,505.29.
On the broader market, losers surpassed gainers 354 versus 169, while 318 counters were unchanged, 1,373 untraded and 21 others suspended.
While the recovery-theme stocks continued to garner investors' interest, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said market sentiment may still be affected by the rising Covid-19 cases and political developments in Malaysia.
"We reckon follow-through buying interest would be seen in the glove manufacturer counters on the back of the current Covid-19 situation in Malaysia as well as the Malaysian Rubber Council's (MRC) projection on gloves demand growth on the global front.
"Besides, the plantation sector may be under the limelight as tighter inventories are expected," it said in a research note today.
The MRC projected a double-digit growth in 2021 in terms of demand for rubber gloves, while the crude palm oil (CPO) price jumped above RM4,500 per tonne after the end-July palm oil stocks slumped due to delayed harvesting amid labour shortages.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank slipped 3.0 sen to RM8, Public Bank fell 1.0 sen to RM3.95, Petronas Chemicals and IHH Healthcare went down 6.0 sen each to RM7.95 and RM5.76, respectively, while TNB decreased 4.0 sen to RM9.69.
Among the actives, Dagang Nexchange eased half-a-sen to 81 sen, Globatex Formations shed 3.5 sen to 69.5 sen, while Serba Dinamik rose 1.0 sen to 41 sen and KNM earned half-a-sen to 19.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 41.39 points weaker at 10,994.75, the FBM ACE lost 9.89 points to 7,132.71, the FBM 70 dipped 48.77 points to 14,573.35, the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 50.05 points to 12,069.50, and the FBMT 100 Index reduced 43.86 points to 10,709.27.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index decreased 31.56 points to 14,759.46, the Plantation Index lost 20.54 points for 6,127.06, while the Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 1.49 points to 187.80.
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2021-08-28 10:58