Bursa prices remain firm at close
Investors looking at Bursa stock prices in Kuala Lumpur in this file photo. -- Reuters picKUALA LUMPUR, Aug 6 – Share prices on Bursa Malaysia remained firm at close today, as investors increased their holdings in selected heavyweights and index-linked counters on the back of improved market sentiments, dealers said.
They said better US job data released on Friday has somehow lifted market sentiments and boosted regional bourses including Malaysia.
At 5 pm, the underlying FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 4.39 points to 1,639.43, compared with Friday’s 1,635.04 closing.
The barometer index, which opened 0.54 of a point lower at 1,634.5, hovered between 1,634.5 and 1,641.03 throughout the afternoon session.
Regionally, the market was higher, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 advancing 171.18 points to 8,726.29, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng surged 332.54 points to 19,998.72 and Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose 19.92 points to 3,071.25.
On the local front, the Finance Index gained 7.59 points to 14,712.77, the Industrial Index added 3.81 points to 2,863.46, while the Plantation Index eased 5.011 points to 8,700.81.
The FBM Emas Index jumped 32.04 points to 11,225.25, the FBMT100 improved 31.25 points to 11,046.26, the FBM70 was 43.02 points higher at 12,411.13, while the FBM Ace Index perked 57.29 points to 4,499.42.
Gainers outnumbered losers by 402 to 328 while 328 counters closed unchanged, 554 untraded and 22 others suspended.
Total volume improved to 1.078 billion shares worth RM1.536 billion compared with Friday’s closing at 950.482 million shares worth RM1.528 billion. – Bernama
