Malaysia Shares May See Renewed Consolidation

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four trading days since the end of the three-day winning streak in which it had gained almost a dozen points or 0.7 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,630-point plateau although it's likely to head south again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests consolidation, especially among the technology and semiconductor companies. The European and U.S. markets were mostly lower and the Asian bourses also figure to follow suit.

The KLCI finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the telecoms and plantations, while the financial sector came in mixed.

For the day, the index added 7.58 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 1,633.54 after trading between 1,629.89 and 1,638.03.

Among the actives, Celcomdigi soared 2.78 percent, while CIMB Group eased 0.14 percent, Genting advanced 1.05 percent, Genting Malaysia increased 0.77 percent, Inari shed 0.50 percent, IOI Corporation accelerated 2.43 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong spiked 2.50 percent, Maxis jumped 1.73 percent, Maybank fell 0.20 percent, MISC gained 0.58 percent, MRDIY surged 3.38 percent, Petronas Chemicals climbed 1.17 percent, PPB Group rallied 1.67 percent, Press Metal was up 0.17 percent, Public Bank collected 0.97 percent, QL Resources strengthened 1.50 percent, RHB Capital gathered 0.35 percent, Sime Darby rose 0.37 percent, SD Guthrie improved 0.94 percent, Telekom Malaysia added 0.85 percent, Tenaga Nasional perked 0.28 percent and Axiata, AMMB Holdings, Dialog Group, Petronas Dagangan and IHH Healthcare were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is a study in contrasts as the Dow opened higher and stayed that way, hitting a fresh record high - while the NASDAQ and S&P remained mired in the red.

The Dow soared 243.60 points or 0.59 percent to finish at 41,198.08, while the NASDAQ plummeted 512.42 points or 2.77 percent to close at 17.996.92 and the S&P 500 tumbled 78.93 points or 1.39 percent to end at 5,588.27.

Wall Street was led lower by semiconductor stocks, which plummeted on reports that President Joe Biden's administration is considering tougher trade rules against companies in its chip crackdown on China.

Negative sentiment was also generated after former President Donald Trump suggested Taiwan should pay the U.S. for defense, claiming the country took "about 100 percent" of America's chip business.

In economic news, the Commerce Department noted a significant rebound by new residential construction and building permits in the U.S. in June. A separate report released by the Federal Reserve showed industrial production in the U.S. increased more than expected last month.

Oil prices rose sharply on Wednesday after data showed an unexpected sharp drop in U.S. crude inventories last week, while a weaker dollar also provided support. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August rallied $2.09 or 2.6 percent at $82.85 a barrel.

Closer to home, Malaysia will provide June data for imports, exports and trade balance later today. Imports are expected to jump an annual 15.5 percent, up from 13.8 percent a month earlier. Exports are tipped to rise 4.6 percent on year, down from 7.3 percent in the previous month. The trade surplus is pegged at 14.80 billion ringgit, up from 10.10 billion ringgit in May.