Malaysia Stock Market May Add To Its Winnings

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last five trading days since the end of the two-day slide in which it had dipped almost 8 points or 0.6 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just beneath the 1,420-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat following stronger than expected employment data from the United States. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow suit.

The KLCI finished sharply higher on Friday following gains from the glove makers and telecoms, while the financials also were mostly higher.

For the day, the index jumped 17.90 points or 1.26 percent to finish at the daily high of 1,438.28 after moving as low as 1,422.08. Volume was 2.386 billion shares worth 1.719 billion ringgit. There were 588 gainers and 269 decliners.

Among the actives, Axiata strengthened 2.93 percent, while CIMB Group and PPB Group both were up 0.37 percent, Dialog Group spiked 5.08 percent, Digi.com jumped 3.54 percent, Genting Malaysia added 1.88 percent, Hartalega Holdings accelerated 4.69 percent , IHH Healthcare gathered 2.20 percent, INARI soared 5.79 percent, IOI Corporation increased 2.56 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong dipped 0.19 percent, Maybank collected 0.48 percent, Maxis advanced 2.43 percent, MISC gained 1.12 percent, MRDIY rallied 3.59 percent, Petronas Chemicals perked 0.12 percent, Genting, Press Metal and Sime Darby all rose 0.92 percent, RHB Capital shed 0.55 percent, Sime Darby Plantations improved 2.59 percent, Tenaga Nasional climbed 2.79 percent, Top Glove surged 6.25 percent and Public Bank and Telekom Malaysia were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened sharply higher on Friday, faded midday but bounced higher again late in the session.

The Dow surged 402.02 points or 1.26 percent to finish at 32,403.22, while the NASDAQ jumped 132.35 points or 1.28 percent to close at 10,475.25 and the S&P 500 climbed 50.66 points or 1.36 percent to end at 3,770.55.

For the week, the NASDAQ plummeted 5.7 percent, the S&P tumbled 3.4 percent and the Dow dropped 1.4 percent.

The volatility followed the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly employment report for October.

The report showed non-farm payroll employment jumped by 261,000 jobs in October after surging by an upwardly revised 315,000 jobs in September.

The report generated a mixed reaction among traders, creating uncertainty about the outlook for future interest rate hikes.

Crude oil prices climbed higher Friday amid easing concerns about the outlook for energy demand. A weak dollar and fears of a ban by the European Union on Russian oil also supported crude oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December ended higher by $4.44 or 5 percent at $92.61 a barrel.