Malaysia Bourse May See Continued Consolidation

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has moved lower in consecutive trading days, slipping more than 7 points or 0.4 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,575-point plateau and it's likely to open under water again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative, with retail and technology stocks likely to fall under pressure. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.

The KLCI finished slightly lower on Thursday as losses from the plantations and telecoms were mitigated by gains from the financials.

For the day, the index slipped 3.21 points or 0.20 percent to finish at 1,577.67 after trading between 1,572.51 and 1,581.49.

Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail soared 2.96 percent, while Axiata tumbled 1.43 percent, Celcomdigi slumped 0.88 percent, CIMB Group collected 0.72 percent, Gamuda rallied 2.00 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong and Nestle Malaysia both fell 0.29 percent, Maxis tanked 2.56 percent, Maybank and PPB Group both shed 0.57 percent, MISC jumped 1.81 percent, MRDIY surged 3.57 percent, Petronas Chemicals plummeted 4.88 percent, Petronas Dagangan plunged 3.22 percent, Petronas Gas slid 0.23 percent, Press Metal spiked 2.16 percent, Public Bank declined 1.10 percent, QL Resources advanced 0.87 percent, RHB Bank dropped 0.75 percent, SD Guthrie sank 0.62 percent, Sunway rose 0.22 percent, Telekom Malaysia retreated 1.30 percent, Tenaga Nasional lost 0.43 percent, YTL Corporation climbed 1.50 percent and YTL Power, IHH Healthcare, IOI Corporation, Sime Darby and Hong Leong Financial were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened lower on Thursday and remained in the red throughout the session.

The Dow plummeted 450,94 points or 1.01 percent to finish at 44,176.65, while the NASDAQ stumbled 93.89 points or 0.47 percent to close at 19,962.36 and the S&P 500 sank 26.63 points or 0.43 percent to end at 6,117.52.

The early sell-off on Wall Street came amid a slump by shares of Walmart (WMT), which came under pressure after the company reported better than fiscal fourth quarter earnings but provided disappointing guidance for the current year.

Traders may also have been looking to cash in on the recent upticks by stocks, which lifted the S&P 500 to record highs despite ongoing tariff concerns and indications the Federal Reserve is likely to keep interest rates on hold for some time.

On the economic front, the Labor Department noted a modest increase by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week. Also, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said Philadelphia-area manufacturing activity continued to expand in February, although the index of activity in the sector pulled back sharply.

Oil futures settled higher on Thursday, as supply disruptions in Russia and drop in gasoline and distillate fuel stocks supported oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures closed higher by $32 or 0.44 percent at $72.57 a barrel.

Closer to home, Malaysia will provide January data for consumer prices later today; in December, inflation was up 0.1 percent on month and 1.7 percent on year.