Losing Streak May Continue For Malaysia Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has ticked lower in back-to-back sessions, slumping more than 15 points or 1.1 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just beneath the 1,390-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the red again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautious as the debt ceiling situation looks to enter the home stretch. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses figure to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the plantation stocks and mixed performances from the financials and telecoms. For the day, the index shed 9.79 points or 0.70 percent to finish at 1,387.12 after trading between 1,380.90 and 1,398.38.

Among the actives, Axiata climbed 1.09 percent, while Celcomdigi retreated 2.19 percent, CIMB Group stumbled 1.43 percent, Dialog Group added 0.47 percent, Genting rose 0.24 percent, Genting Malaysia lost 0.40 percent, IHH Healthcare fell 0.17 percent, Inari soared 2.44 percent, IOI Corporation plummeted 5.63 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong tumbled 3.51 percent, Maxis plunged 3.75 percent, Maybank advanced 0.70 percent, MISC gained 0.41 percent, MRDIY tanked 3.68 percent, Petronas Chemicals surrendered 2.81 percent, PPB Group rallied 2.26 percent, Press Metal declined 2.54 percent, Public Bank shed 0.78 percent, RHB Capital slumped 1.29 percent, Sime Darby jumped 1.97 percent, Sime Darby Plantations sank 0.94 percent, Telekom Malaysia dropped 0.97 percent and Tenaga Nasional skidded 1.14 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened solidly lower on Wednesday, making back some of the ground as the day progressed but still ending firmly in the red.

The Dow dropped 134.51 points or 0.41 percent to finish at 32,908.27, while the NASDAQ shed 82.14 points or 0.63 percent to close at 12,935.29 and the S&P 500 slumped 25.69 points or 0.61 percent to end at 4,179.83.

The weakness on Wall Street came as traders kept a close eye on developments regarding the bill to raise the U.S. debt ceiling and avoid potentially disastrous default. The debt bill, which advanced out of the House Rules Committee on Tuesday, is set to be voted on in the House any time now.

In economic news, the Labor Department said that job openings rose to 10.1 million in April from a revised 9.7 million in March. Economists had expected job openings to fall to 9.4 million.

Crude oil prices fell sharply on Wednesday as worries about fuel demand resurfaced, while a stronger dollar also weighed on oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July slumped $1.37 or 2 percent at $68.09 a barrel.