Malaysia Shares Due For Support On Friday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has moved lower in back-to-back sessions, sinking more than 10 points or 0.6 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,545-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive, with technology and energy stocks expected to lead the markets higher. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the financial shares and telecoms, while the plantation stocks were mixed.

For the day, the index slipped 6.91 points or 0.45 percent to finish at 1,545.49 after trading between 1,542.72 and 1,551.97.

Among the actives, Axiata declined 1.08 percent, while Celcomdigi slumped 0.70 percent, CIMB Group sank 0.47 percent, Genting fell 0.20 percent, IHH Healthcare lost 0.32 percent, IOI Corporation rose 0.25 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong rallied 1.15 percent, Maxis added 0.53 percent, Maybank eased 0.10 percent, MRDIY retreated 1.30 percent, Petronas Chemicals advanced 0.71 percent, PPB Group tanked 1.94 percent, Press Metal gained 0.43 percent, Public Bank dropped 0.67 percent, QL Resources perked 0.17 percent, RHB Capital slid 0.18 percent, Sime Darby skidded 0.76 percent, Sime Darby Plantations shed 0.44 percent, Tenaga Nasional tumbled 1.41 percent, YTL Corporation plummeted 3.15 percent, YTL Power plunged 3.08 percent and Telekom Malaysia, AMMB Holdings, Genting Malaysia, MISC and Hong Leong Bank were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is strong as the major averages opened higher and continued to climb as the day progressed, ending near session highs.

The Dow surged 456.87 points or 1.18 percent to finish at 39,069.11, while the NASDAQ soared 460.72 points or 2.96 percent to end at 16,041.62 and the S&P 500 rallied 105.23 points or 2.11 percent to close at 5,087.03.

The rally on Wall Street largely reflected a positive reaction to earnings news from Nvidia (NVDA), with the chipmaker spiking by 16.4 percent to a record closing high.

In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department reported an unexpected dip in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week. Also, the National Association of Realtors noted a big rebound in existing home sales in January.

Crude oil prices climbed higher on Thursday as rising tensions in the Middle East raised the possibility of a near-term supply disruption. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for April added $0.70 or 0.9 percent at $78.61 a barrel.