Bursa Malaysia falls in early trade as technology sell-off weighs
Declining counters outnumbered gainers 423 to 103, with turnover reaching RM165.34 million.
Bursa Malaysia opened weaker on Oct 19 following Wall Street losses linked to selling in technology and artificial intelligence-related shares. The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) stood at 1,599.34 at 9.15 am, a decline of 8.42 points, or 0.52 per cent.
The benchmark had ended Friday at 1,607.76 before starting the session at 1,604.18, down 3.58 points. Market turnover reached RM165.34 million on volume of 247.52 million units.
There were 423 declining counters against 103 gainers. Another 270 were unchanged, while 2,048 remained untraded and 34 were suspended.
Apex Securities Bhd said continued foreign selling and global uncertainty were likely to keep the benchmark cautious in the near term. The brokerage also warned that US technology share losses, high oil prices and inflation pressures could curb risk appetite before the US Federal Reserve’s Oct 29 policy decision.
Among heavyweights, Public Bank traded at RM4.71 after losing 12 sen, while Maybank was four sen lower at RM9.95. CIMB held at RM7.20. Tenaga Nasional declined by four sen to RM12.69, and IHH Healthcare was two sen lower at RM7.89.
Petronas Dagangan gained 24 sen, reaching RM19.88. By contrast, Hong Leong Financial Group dropped 28 sen, ending at RM17.56. Sector indices were mixed: financial services and plantations declined, while industrial products and services and energy advanced.
