Malaysia Stock Market Likely To Remain Rangebound On Monday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has tracked higher in two of three trading days since the end of the two-day slide in which it had slumped more than 20 points or 1.1 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,710-point plateau although it's expected to open under water on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets continues to be negative thanks to the conflict in the Middle East and the resulting surge in oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished slightly higher on Friday following gains from the telecoms, weakness from the financials and a mixed picture from the plantations and industrials.

For the day, the index perked 1.76 points or 0.10 percent to finish at 1,712.65 after trading between 1,708.45 and 1,716.28. Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail sank 0.85 percent, AMMB Holdings was up 0.15 percent, Axiata gained 0.44 percent, Celcomdigi jumped 1.67 percent, CIMB Group retreated 1.41 percent, Gamuda perked 0.25 percent, IHH Healthcare improved 0.95 percent, IOI Corporation strengthened 1.46 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong eased 0.10 percent, Maxis slumped 1.13 percent, Maybank collected 0.17 percent, MISC shed 0.84 percent, MRDIY added 0.62 percent, Nestle Malaysia advanced 1.08 percent, Petronas Dagangan gathered 0.36 percent, Petronas Gas soared 4.54 percent, PPB Group increased 0.70 percent, Press Metal dropped 0.91 percent, Public Bank lost 0.41 percent, QL Resources spiked 3.49 percent, RHB Bank declined 1.40 percent, Sime Darby tumbled 2.11 percent, SD Guthrie climbed 1.20 percent, Sunway surged 4.59 percent, Telekom Malaysia rose 0.41 percent, YTL Corporation expanded 1.21 percent, YTL Power vaulted 1.38 percent and Petronas Chemicals and Tenaga Nasional were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street remains grim as the major averages opened lower on Friday and got worse as the day progressed, ending at session lows.

The Dow plunged 793.46 points or 1.73 percent to finish at 45,166.64, while the NASDAQ tumbled 459.74 points or 2.15 percent to close at 20,948.36 and the S&P 500 dropped 108.31 points or 1.67 percent to end at 6,368.85.

For the week, the NASDAQ plummeted 3.2 percent, the S&P 500 dove 2.1 percent and the Dow slid 0.9 percent. The steep losses dragged the major averages down to their lowest closing levels in over eight months.

A continued surge by the price of crude oil weighed on Wall Street, with international benchmark Brent crude futures jumping back above $110 a barrel after soaring by more than 5 percent.

Crude oil prices skyrocketed on Friday after Iran shut down reports of peace talks for the ongoing conflict. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was up $5.32 or 5.63 percent at $99.80 per barrel.

Analysts suggest that the longer crude oil prices remain at elevated levels, the greater the fear of inflationary pressures continuing to climb.