Malaysia Stock Market May Run Out Of Steam On Wednesday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has moved higher in four straight sessions, collecting almost 40 points or 2.4 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,715-point plateau and investors are likely to cash in on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets remains grim thanks to ongoing geopolitical concerns in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The KLCI finished modestly higher again on Tuesday following gains from the financial shares and mixed performances from the telecoms, industrials and plantations.

For the day, the index added 13.03 points or 0.77 percent to finish at 1,715.33 after trading between 1,700.54 and 1,716.64. Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail tumbled 1.37 percent, while AMMB Holdings accelerated 1.92 percent, Celcomdigi declined 1.32 percent, CIMB Group soared 2.77 percent, Gamuda elevated 1.14 percent, IHH Healthcare shed 0.46 percent, IOI Corporation rose 0.24 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong retreated 1.34 percent, Maxis lost 0.28 percent, Maybank collected 0.18 percent, MISC expanded 1.24 percent, MRDIY strengthened 1.26 percent, Nestle Malaysia perked 0.02 percent, Petronas Chemicals plummeted 3.58 percent, Petronas Dagangan slumped 0.99 percent, Petronas Gas gained 0.33 percent, PPB Group fell 0.18 percent, Press Metal plunged 2.02 percent, Public Bank rallied 2.35 percent, QL Resources climbed 1.05 percent, RHB Bank advanced 0.98 percent, Sime Darby dropped 0.87 percent, SD Guthrie sank 0.67 percent, Sunway added 0.56 percent, Telekom Malaysia vaulted 1.29 percent, Tenaga Nasional jumped 1.39 percent, YTL Corporation spiked 2.58 percent, YTL Power surged 3.83 percent and Axiata was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened higher on Tuesday but quickly turned lower and remained in the red for the remainder of the day, ending at session lows.

The Dow dropped 293.18 points of 0.59 percent to finish at 49,149.38, while the NASDAQ sank 144.43 points or 0.59 percent to end at 24,259.96 and the S&P 500 lost 45.13 points or 0.63 percent to close at 7,064.01.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as the price of crude oil has moved sharply higher over the course of the day.

Crude oil prices continued to surge on Tuesday as the ongoing shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz kept supply disruption concerns alive. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was up $3.99 or 4.45 percent at $93.60 per barrel.

Earlier in the session, the markets benefitted from positive corporate earnings news from the likes of UnitedHealth (UNH) and homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI), both of which handily beat expectations.

Early buying interest was also generated in reaction to a Commerce Department report showing retail sales in the U.S. surged by more than expected in the month of March.