KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s benchmark stock index descended into the red at midday as investors switched to profit-taking from stocks valuations that hovered at a five-month high.
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At 12.30pm, the FBM KLCI was down 5.57 points to 1,453.86 while the overall market was also negative with 485 decliners compared to 282 gainers.
Trading volume in the first half of trading was 2.27 billion shares valued at RM882.05mil.
Asian markets came close to a 16-month peak as improving prospects for the global economy lifted investor sentiment.
China’s main index was up 0.1% to 3,294 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng stayed flat at 20,077.
Japan’s Nikkei was up 0.6% to 33,374 and South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.2% to 2,663.
On Bursa Malaysia, stocks seeing the most selling included banks such as Public Bank down five sen to RM4.12, Maybank falling three sen to RM8.99 and CIMB shedding six sen to RM5.49.
Hong Leong Bank bucked the trend, rising six sen to RM19.64.
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In plantations, IOI was down one sen to RM4.16 while Sime Darby Plantation dropped four sen to RM4.51.
Stock exchange operator Bursa Malaysia saw buying interest following the release of its quarterly earnings yesterday, which came within expectations. The share rose 13 sen to RM6.84.
DKSH jumped 15 sen to RM5.07 and Favelle Favco gained six sen to RM1.85.
New ACE Market listing KGW rose 2.5 sen to 23.5 sen on the back of 134.21 million shares done, the second highest of the morning.
Sapura Energy topped the actives list with 354.28 million shares, rising one sen to 4.5 sen.
KNM rounded out the Top 3 with a 0.5 sen gain to 10 sen on 75.27 million shares done.
– The Star