Market Commentary and Intraday News

Quiet Return Expected For Malaysia Stocks

277 days ago

(RTTNews) - Ahead of the four-day weekend holiday for Eid-ul-Fitr, the Malaysian stock market had closed lower in two straight sessions, easing almost 4 points or 0.25 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index settled just below the 1,650-point plateau, and now analysts are forecasting a flat open with a hint of upside on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed with a touch of upside as Spain saw a steep decline in borrowing costs at an auction on Tuesday amid speculation that the European Central Bank would resume its purchase of peripheral bonds. Further, markets are hopeful that a series of bilateral meetings between key Eurozone leaders may produce a lasting solution to the region's prolonged sovereign debt crisis. The European markets were higher and the U.S. bourses were down - and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished flat on Friday as gains from the financial sector were offset by weakness from the industrial issues and the plantation stocks.

For the day, the index eased 0.30 points or 0.02 percent to finish at 1,649.79 after trading between 1,648.05 and 1,654.53. Volume was 1.481 billion shares worth 1.645 billion ringgit. There were 373 gainers and 369 decliners, with 341 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Maybank, Sime Darby, Nextnation Communication and Ingenuity Solutions all finished higher, while CIMB Group and Petronas Chemicals ended lower.

The lead from Wall Street is negative as stocks turned lower on Tuesday after failing to sustain an early upward move. The downturn came as some traders cashed in on the recent strength in the markets, although selling pressure remained relatively subdued.

The early strength followed optimism about the financial situation in Europe amid reports that the European Central Bank is considering buying bonds from troubled eurozone countries such as Italy and Spain in order to reduce borrowing costs.

Optimism about potential progress on addressing the Greek debt crisis also generated some buying interest, with Eurogroup chief Jean-Claude Juncker due to meet with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras in Athens on Wednesday.

Nonetheless, the markets were unable to sustain the early upward move, as traders seemed somewhat reluctant to continue buying stocks following recent strength.

A lack of major U.S. economic data also contributed to the lack of follow-through and some traders subsequently looked to cash in on the early gains, which lifted the S&P 500 to its highest intraday level in over four years.

Among individual stocks, shares of Best Buy ended the day in the red after the consumer electronic retailer reported second quarter earnings that fell by much more than anticipated. Bookstore operator Barnes & Noble also moved lower despite reporting a much narrower than expected first quarter loss. On the other hand, Urban Outfitters moved higher after the apparel retailer reported better than expected second quarter results.

The major U.S. averages ended the day firmly in negative territory but off their worst levels of the day as the Dow fell 68.06 points or 0.5 percent to finish at 13,203.58, while the NASDAQ slipped 8.95 points or 0.3 percent to end at 3,067.26 and the S&P 500 dropped 4.96 points or 0.4 percent to close at 1,413.17.

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