Malaysia Bourse Poised To Halt Its Slide On Thursday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has finished lower in two straight sessions, sinking more than 25 points or 1.6 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,510-point plateau although it may find support on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic on easing inflation concerns. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the financial shares and mixed performances from the telecoms, industrials and plantations.

For the day, the index dropped 13.90 points or 0.91 percent to finish at 1,511.50 after trading between 1,510.14 and 1,526.29.

Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail plummeted 3.48 percent, while AMMB Holdings surrendered 2.72 percent, Axiata rallied 2.00 percent, Celcomdigi retreated 1.81 percent, CIMB Group tumbled 1.96 percent, Gamuda jumped 1.41 percent, IHH Healthcare sank 0.91 percent, IOI Corporation and MISC both dropped 1.06 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong gathered 0.39 percent, Maybank slumped 1.24 percent, MRDIY weakened 1.22 percent, Nestle Malaysia skidded 1.18 percent, Petronas Chemicals fell 0.62 percent, Petronas Dagangan climbed 1.31 percent, Petronas Gas gained 0.45 percent, PPB Group plunged 3.10 percent, Press Metal declined 1.76 percent, Public Bank shed 0.70 percent, QL Resources lost 0.66 percent, RHB Bank stumbled 2.38 percent, Sime Darby tanked 2.94 percent, SD Guthrie rose 0.42 percent, Sunway added 0.61 percent, Telekom Malaysia slid 0.30 percent, Tenaga Nasional contracted 1.58 percent, YTL Corporation advanced 0.83 percent and YTL Power and Maxis were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday, dipped midday but then bounced higher heading into the close.

The Dow jumped 231.49 points or 0.53 percent to finish at 44,254.78, while the NASDAQ added 52.69 points or 0.25 percent to close at a fresh record high of 20,730.49 and the S&P 500 rose 19.94 points or 0.32 percent to end at 6,263.70.

Stocks came under pressure in late morning trade following reports President Donald Trump discussed the possibility of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell during a meeting with House Republicans.

However, the major averages moved back to the upside after Trump said he's "not planning" on firing Powell.

The choppy trading on Wall Street also followed a Labor Department report showing producer prices in the U.S. unexpectedly came in flat in June. While the data helped ease inflation concerns, the Fed is still seen as likely to leave interest rates unchanged until September at the earliest.

Crude oil prices dropped for the third straight day on Wednesday after the Energy Information Administration said gasoline inventories increased by 3.4 million barrels last week and are slightly above the five-year average for this time of year. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery fell $0.14 to settle at $65.38 per barrel.