Malaysia Stock Market May Give Up Support At 1,400 Points

(RTTNews) - Ahead of Monday's holiday in honor of the birth of the prophet Muhammad, the Malaysia stock market had finished lower in back-to-back sessions, sinking more than 15 points or 1 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,405-point plateau and it may take further damage on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on concerns over economic growth and the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow that lead.

The KLCI finished sharply lower on Friday following losses from the financial shares, plantation stocks, glove makers and telecoms.

For the day, the index skidded 14.43 points or 1.02 percent to finish at 1,406.00 after trading between 1,405.18 and 1,421.90. Volume was 1.910 billion shares worth 1.434 billion ringgit. There were 485 decliners and 308 gainers.

Among the actives, Axiata declined 2.57 percent, while CIMB Group was down 0.19 percent, Dialog Group tumbled 3.45 percent, Digi.com weakened 1.71 percent, Genting slid 0.44 percent, Genting Malaysia fell 0.72 percent, Hartalega Holdings plummeted 6.11 percent, IHH Healthcare shed 0.86 percent, IOI Corporation sank 1.06 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong skidded 1.45 percent, Maybank slipped 0.23 percent, Maxis stumbled 2.49 percent, MRDIY slumped 1.97 percent, Petronas Chemicals lost 0.81 percent, Press Metal dropped 1.14 percent, Public Bank collected 0.24 percent, RHB Capital eased 0.18 percent, Sime Darby Plantations surrendered 3.12 percent, Telekom Malaysia plunged 4.95 percent, Tenaga Nasional retreated 2.52 percent, Top Glove tanked 4.44 percent and PPB Group, Sime Darby, INARI and MISC were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is negative as the major averages opened flat on Monday but quickly turned lower, staying that way for the balance of the session.

The Dow dropped 93.91 points or 0.32 percent to finish at 29,202.88, while the NASDAQ tumbled 110.30 points or 1.04 percent to end at 10,542.10 and the S&P 500 slipped 27.27 points or 0.75 percent to close at 3,612.39.

The soft action on Wall Street may be partially attributed to light turnover, with many investors away from their desks for the Columbus Day holiday.

Soft sentiment still governed the markets after the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report last week failed to ease concerns about the outlook for interest rates by coming in stronger than economists had anticipated.

U.S. inflation data, minutes from the Fed's September meeting and reports on retail sales and consumer sentiment due this week will provide more insights into policymakers' view of where inflation stands and the outlook for the future path of interest rates.

Crude oil prices drifted lower on Monday as soft data from China raised concerns about the outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November sank $1.51 or 1.6 percent at 91.13 a barrel.