Malaysia Shares Expected To Be Rangebound On Monday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has tracked higher in three straight sessions, advancing almost 25 points or 1.7 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,485-point plateau and it's likely to remain in that neighborhood again on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky as investors try to balance upbeat economic data against its consequences for interest rates. The European markets were down on Friday and the U.S. bourses were slightly higher and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished modestly higher on Friday following gains from the financial shares and the telecoms.

For the day, the index gained 10.35 points or 0.70 percent to finish at the daily high of 1,487.61 after moving as low as 1,476.85.

Among the actives, Axiata spiked 2.81 percent, while Celcomdigi jumped 1.69 percent, CIMB Group advanced 0.84 percent, Genting climbed 0.85 percent, Genting Malaysia accelerated 2.19 percent, IOI Corporation shed 0.50 percent, Maxis added 0.78 percent, Maybank collected 0.33 percent, MISC fell 0.27 percent, MRDIY soared 3.47 percent, Petronas Chemicals tumbled 1.37 percent, PPB Group dropped 0.96 percent, Press Metal dipped 0.20 percent, Public Bank rallied 0.93 percent, RHB Capital rose 0.73 percent, Sime Darby lost 0.43 percent, Sime Darby Plantations sank 0.91 percent, Tenaga Nasional gained 0.77 percent, YTL Corporation skyrocketed 8.29 percent, YTL Power surged 7.33 percent and Kuala Lumpur Kepong, IHH Healthcare and Telekom Malaysia were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street offers little clarity as the major averages saw considerable volatility on Friday before ending with slight gains.

The Dow added 25.81 points or 0.07 percent to finish at 37,466.11, while the NASDAQ rose 13.77 points or 0.09 percent to close at 14,524.07 and the S&P 500 perked 8.56 points or 0.18 percent to end at 4,697.24.

For the week, the major averages were down for the first time in 10 weeks as the NASDAQ plunged 3.3 percent, the S&P 500 slumped 1.5 percent and the Dow slid 0.6 percent.

The volatility came as traders reacted to key U.S. economic data, including a closely watched Labor Department report showing stronger than expected job growth in December.

While the data initially raised concerns about the outlook for interest rates, positive sentiment prevailed as traders digested the details of the report, which also showed notable downward revisions to job growth in October and November.

Crude oil showed a strong move to the upside on Friday, reflected ongoing fears of an escalation of the Israel-Hamas war into a broader regional conflict. West Texas Intermediate for February delivery surged $1.62 or 2.2 percent to $73.81 a barrel.