Malaysia Stock Market May Add To Its Winnings

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has moved higher in two straight sessions, collecting more than a dozen points or 0.7 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,610-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the green again on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, with support from technology shares likely offset by weakness from the oil companies. The European and U.S. markets saw mild upside and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished slightly higher on Monday following gains from the financials and plantations, while the telecoms and industrials were mixed.

For the day, the index rose 1.90 points or 0.12 percent to finish at 1,610.95 after trading between 1,606.76 and 1,613.53. Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail slumped 1.44 percent, while AMMB Holdings and Petronas Dagangan both expanded 0.71 percent, Axiata soared 2.69 percent, Celcomdigi rallied 1.09 percent, CIMB Group spiked 1.66 percent, Gamuda stumbled 1.60 percent, IHH Healthcare vaulted 0.67 percent, IOI Corporation and Press Metal both improved 0.51 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong climbed 0.79 percent, Maxis strengthened 0.82 percent, Maybank collected 0.20 percent, MISC perked 0.14 percent, MRDIY surged 3.09 percent, Nestle Malaysia accelerated 1.10 percent, Petronas Chemicals plummeted 4.40 percent, Petronas Gas increased 0.43 percent, PPB Group dropped 1.19 percent, Public Bank and QL Resources both rose 0.23 percent, RHB Bank jumped 0.91 percent, Sime Darby sank 0.88 percent, Sunway fell 0.18 percent, Telekom Malaysia shed 0.71 percent, Tenaga Nasional retreated 1.50 percent, YTL Corporation added 0.37 percent, YTL Power gained 0.24 percent and SD Guthrie was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mildly positive as the major averages opened mixed on Monday but eventually managed to finish with modest gains.

The Dow added 68.78 points or 0.15 percent to finish at 46,316.07, while the NASDAQ gained 107.09 points or 0.48 percent to end at 22,591.15 and the S&P 500 rose 17.51 points or 0.26 percent to close at 6,661.21 percent.

The upswing on Wall Street reflected strength among technology stocks, with AI darling and market leader Nvidia (NVDA) jumping 2.1 percent and video game maker Electronic Arts (EA) surging 4.5 percent.

However, traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves amid concerns about a potential U.S. government shutdown ahead of a deadline later today.

Traders were also looking ahead to the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday, which could impact the outlook for interest rates. But the data could be delayed if the government shuts down.

Crude oil prices tumbled on Monday in the wake of oversupply concerns thanks to OPEC's plans for increasing output. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery was down $2.50 or 3.80 percent at $63.22 per barrel.