Malaysia Shares May Run Out Of Steam On Wednesday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has ticked higher in back-to-back sessions, collecting more than 8 points or 0.6 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,585-point plateau although the rally may stall on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside on growing optimism about the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished slightly higher on Tuesday as the financial shares, plantation stocks and telecoms all ended mostly in the green.

For the day, the index perked 1.22 points or 0.08 percent to finish at 1,586.81 after trading between 1,581.89 and 1,587.53. Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail added 0.80 percent, while AMMB Holdings gained 0.55 percent, Axiata climbed 1.21 percent, CIMB Group retreated 1.51 percent, Gamuda rose 0.54 percent, IHH Healthcare expanded 0.29 percent, IOI Corporation spiked 2.33 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong gathered 0.50 percent, Maybank and YTL Corporation both were up 0.40 percent, MISC tumbled 1.60 percent, MRDIY soared 2.61 percent, Nestle Malaysia accelerated 2.23 percent, Petronas Dagangan advanced 0.81 percent, Petronas Gas perked 0.32 percent, PPB Group surged 3.03 percent, Public Bank collected 0.23 percent, QL Resources jumped 1.67 percent, RHB Bank increased 1.06 percent, Sime Darby rallied 1.92 percent, Sunway strengthened 1.52 percent, Telekom Malaysia picked up 0.14 percent, Tenaga Nasional stumbled 1.65 percent, YTL Power improved 1.20 percent and Celcomdigi, Press Metal, Maxis, SD Guthrie and Petronas Chemicals were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages shook off early weakness on Tuesday and trended generally higher to finish at record closing highs.

The Dow climbed 196.39 points or 0.43 percent to finish at 45,711.34, while the NASDAQ improved 80.79 points or 0.37 percent to close at 21,193.11 and the S&P 500 gained 17.46 points or 0.27 percent to end at 6,512.61.

The strength on Wall Street reflected ongoing optimism about the outlook for interest rates ahead of closely watched inflation data in the coming days. The Labor Department is scheduled to release reports on producer price inflation and consumer price inflation today and tomorrow, respectively.

While last Friday's weaker-than-expected jobs data increased confidence that the Fed will cut interest rates at its meeting next week, the inflation data could influence how aggressively the central bank lowers rates.

In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department said non-farm employment for the 12 months through March 2025 was downwardly revised by 911,000 jobs, also fueling optimism for a rate cut.

Crude oil advanced on Tuesday, extending gains for the second day amid increasing expectations of western sanctions against Russia, while the Israeli attack on Qatar added support to oil prices. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery was up $0.29 or 0.47 percent at $62.55 per barrel.

Closer to home, Malaysia will see July figures for unemployment later today; in June, the jobless rate was 3.0 percent.