Win Streak May Continue For Malaysia Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has moved higher in seven straight sessions, gathering almost 25 points or 1.6 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,465-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the green again.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on continued optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished barely higher on Tuesday following mixed performances from the telecoms, financials and plantations.

For the day, the index gained 0.39 points or 0.03 percent to finish at 1,465.67 after trading between 1,464.55 and 1,467.61.

Among the actives, Axiata and Nestle Malaysia both advanced 0.42 percent, while Celcomdigi rallied 0.49 percent, CIMB Group collected 0.34 percent, Dialog Group soared 2.06 percent, Genting gained 0.22 percent, Genting Malaysia dropped 0.37 percent, IHH Healthcare lost 0.33 percent, IOI Corporation skidded 1.00 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong rose 0.19 percent, Maybank slid 0.22 percent, MISC and Petronas Gas both jumped 0.69 percent, MRDIY surged 2.78 percent, Petronas Chemicals tumbled 1.39 percent, Public Bank fell 0.23 percent, RHB Capital sank 0.36 percent, Sime Darby Plantations retreated 1.10 percent, Telekom Malaysia eased 0.12 percent, Tenaga Nasional perked 0.10 percent, Westports Holdings added 0.27 percent and PPB Group, Press Metal, Maxis, Sime Darby and QL Resources were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened higher on Tuesday and remained in the green throughout the session.

The Dow jumped 251.90 points or 0.68 percent to finish at 37,557.92, while the NASDAQ advanced 98.03 points or 0.66 percent to close at 15,003.22 and the S&P 500 added 27.81 points or 0.59 percent to end at 4,768.37.

Optimism about the outlook for interest rates continued to contribute to strength on Wall Street following the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement last week.

Adding to the positive sentiment, San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly said interest rate cuts are likely to be appropriate next year because of an improvement in inflation.

In economic news, the Commerce Department reported a substantial increase in new residential construction in the U.S. in November. Also, building permits slumped more than expected.

Oil prices rose on Tuesday, extending gains on supply concerns after several companies rerouting their vessels due to the attacks by Houthi militants in the Red Sea. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January rose $0.97 or 1.3 percent at $73.44 a barrel.