KUALA LUMPUR – Bursa Malaysia extended its weak performance in early trade today on the back of lower sentiment due to the increase in Covid-19 cases yesterday.
At 9.07am, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI eased 1.66 points to 1,578.86 from yesterday’s close of 1,580.52.
The index opened 2.67 points easier at 1,577.85.
On the broader market, losers outpaced gainers 262 to 166, while 252 counters were unchanged, 1,525 untraded and 18 suspended.
The ringgit, too, extended yesterday’s losses against the United States dollar, following the release of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting minutes that indicate the US economy is improving rapidly, possibly leading to tighter monetary policy.
At 9am, the local currency traded at 4.1410/1460 against the greenback from 4.1360/1400 at the close yesterday.
ActivTrades trader Dyogenes Rodrigues Diniz said the market had anticipated the monetary policy to change to restrain inflation, and this is the main cause of the dollar’s gains against the ringgit.
“US macro factors are the driving force for this pair of currency at the moment, among a more muted macro outlook in Malaysia. From a technical point of view, and also on the back of this macro environment, we expect the local note to hit the 4.1500 level by Friday.” – Bernama, May 20, 2021
