Malaysia Stock Market May See Continued Selling Pressure

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market on Wednesday ended the two-day winning streak in which it had picked up more than 5 points or 0.3 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,470-point plateau and it may extend its losses on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to lower on concerns over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished slightly lower on Wednesday following losses from the financial shares and mixed performances from the plantation stocks and telecoms.

For the day, the index slipped 5.63 points or 0.38 percent to finish at 1,470.75 after trading between 1,469.01 and 1,479.95.

Among the actives, Axiata skidded 0.66 percent, while CIMB Group plummeted 3.23 percent, Dialog Group gained 0.39 percent, Genting climbed 1.20 percent, Genting Malaysia spiked 1.77 percent, IHH Healthcare slumped 0.67 percent, INARI declined 1.13 percent, IOI Corporation added 0.52 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong rose 0.18 percent, Maybank perked 0.12 percent, Maxis sank 0.24 percent, MISC jumped 1.80 percent, MRDIY advanced 1.09 percent, Petronas Chemicals rallied 1.23 percent, PPB Group eased 0.11 percent, Press Metal tumbled 1.69 percent, Public Bank retreated 0.96 percent, RHB Capital plunged 2.65 percent, Sime Darby Plantations tanked 2.02 percent, Telekom Malaysia improved 0.97 percent, Tenaga Nasional strengthened 1.28 percent and Digi.com, Sime Darby and Nestle were unchanged.

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

The Dow tumbled 207.68 points or 0.61 percent to finish at 33,949.01, while the NASDAQ plunged 203.27 points or 1.68 percent to close at 11,910.52 and the S&P 500 sank 46.14 points or 1.11 percent to end at 4,117.86.

The pullback on Wall Street came as some traders looked to cash in Tuesday's gains, which came amid a positive reaction to comments by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Powell acknowledged recent indications of easing inflation but noted that the disinflationary process has a long way to go and cautioned further interest rate hikes could be needed.

The positive sentiment generated in reaction to Powell's comments was partly offset by remarks by New York Fed President John Williams, who said interest rates may need to be kept at an elevated level for a few years to bring down inflation.

Crude oil futures settled higher on Wednesday, extending gains to a third straight session amid hopes of higher demand from China. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March ended higher by $1.33 or 1.7 percent at $78.47 a barrel.