Malaysia Bourse May Earn Back Friday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last six trading days since the end of the two-day slide in which it had slipped more than 10 points or 0.6 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just beneath the 1,540-point plateau although it's expected to rebound again on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with support expected from the technology and oil companies. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses figure to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Friday following losses from the telecoms and financials, while the plantations were mixed.

For the day, the index dropped 13.42 points or 0.86 percent to finish at 1,538.02 after trading between 1,537.11 and 1,556.22.

Among the actives, Axiata and Maxis both slumped 1.08 percent, while Celcomdigi declined 1.15 percent, CIMB Group surrendered 1.86 percent, Genting tanked 2.10 percent, Genting Malaysia plunged 2.44 percent, IHH Healthcare eased 0.16 percent, IOI Corporation gained 0.50 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong retreated 1.61 percent, Maybank lost 0.84 percent, MISC sank 0.92 percent, MRDIY added 0.64 percent, Petronas Chemicals skidded 1.00 percent, PPB Group tumbled 1.80 percent, Press Metal lid 0.21 percent, Public Bank shed 0.91 percent, QL Resources rallied 2.07 percent, RHB Capital collected 0.18 percent, Sime Darby stumbled 1.11 percent, Sime Darby Plantations gathered 0.23 percent, Telekom Malaysia dropped 0.99 percent, Tenaga Nasional rose 0.36 percent, YTL Corporation plummeted 2.62 percent and YTL Power fell 0.76 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened flat on Friday but accelerated as the day progressed, sending the NASDAQ and S&P to record closing highs.

The Dow advanced 90.98 points or 0.23 percent to finish at 39,087.38, while the NASDAQ jumped 183.04 points or 1.14 percent to close at 16,274.94 and the S&P 500 rallied 40.81 points or 0.80 percent to end at 5,137.08. For the week, the NASDAQ shot up 1.7 percent and the S&P 500 rose 1.0 percent, but the Dow eased 0.1 percent.

The surge by the NASDAQ reflected substantial strength among computer hardware stocks following upbeat results from Dell (DELL), with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index soaring to a record closing high.

In economic news, the Institute for Supply Management said manufacturing activity in the U.S. unexpectedly contracted at an accelerated rate in February. Also, the University of Michigan released revised data showing consumer sentiment unexpectedly deteriorated in February.

The soft data contributed to a downturn by treasury yields, which added to optimism about the Federal Reserve eventually cutting interest rates.

Oil prices rose to a four-month high on Friday, buoyed by reports that oil demand surged to a four-year high in 2023 and will hold near that level again this year. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April spiked $1.71 or 2.2 percent at $79.97 a barrel, the highest close since November 6, 2023.