KUALA LUMPUR – Bursa Malaysia opened higher but retreated thereafter as profit taking emerged in selected heavyweights after recent gains, dealers said.
The benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) opened 2.05 points better at 1,603.43 from Monday’s close of 1,601.38, but retreated to 1,600.49 after 15 minutes of trading.
Market breadth was negative with losers leading gainers 262 to 233, while 374 counters were unchanged, 1,349 untraded and six others suspended.
Turnover stood at 660.88 million units worth RM310.27 million.
Meanwhile, the ringgit extended Monday’s gains against the US dollar to open higher today after the United States economy showed signs of short-term weakness, a dealer said.
At 9.04am, the local note rose to 4.1460/1490 versus the greenback from Monday’s close of 4.1530/1575.
OANDA senior market analyst Edward Moya said the Covid-19 Delta variant’s impact on the US economy might be greater than anticipated, which does not bode well for third-quarter spending. – Bernama, September 1, 2021
