KUALA LUMPUR – Bursa Malaysia opened marginally lower today due to mild profit-taking in selected heavyweights, in line with the weaker sentiment in regional bourses, dealers said.
At 9.15am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.87 of-a-point to 1,459.41 from 1,460.28 at yesterday’s close.
The key index opened 1.25 points easier at 1,459.03.
On the broader market, losers surpassed gainers 224 to 155, while 298 counters were unchanged, 1,663 untraded and 14 others suspended.
Turnover stood at 362.11 million units worth RM129.38 million.
The ringgit extended its downward trend against the US dollar this morning as the greenback strengthened amid higher-than-expected US retail sales data yesterday, analysts said.
At 9.02am, the local note eased to 4.6425/6450 against the US dollar from 4.6335/6385 at the close yesterday.
According to the US Commerce Department, US retail sales increased 0.7% month-on-month in July, surpassing consensus estimates of between 0.4% and 0.3%. – Bernama, August 16, 2023
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