Malaysia Stock Market Set To Add To Its Winnings On Friday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market on Thursday halted the six-day losing streak in which it had tumbled more than 50 points or 3.4 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index new rests just above the 1,495-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the green again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian bourses is positive after interest rate concerns resulted in oversold markets. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are tipped to open in similar fashion.

The KLCI finished sharply higher on Thursday with gains across the board - especially from the financials, plantations, telecoms and glove makers.

For the day, the index jumped 28.23 points or 1.92 percent to finish at the daily high of 1,495.49 after moving as low as 1,470.37. Volume was 2.642 billion shares worth 2.108 billion ringgit. There were 663 gainers and 293 decliners.

Among the actives, Axiata skyrocketed 5.84 percent, while CIMB Group was up 0.75 percent, Dialog Group gathered 2.16 percent, Digi.com surged 5.37 percent, Genting added 1.95 percent, Genting Malaysia and IHH Healthcare both improved 2.41 percent, Hartalega Holdings climbed 3.55 percent, INARI advanced 2.63 percent, IOI Corporation strengthened 4.10 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong dipped 0.18 percent, Maybank collected 0.34 percent, Maxis rallied 4.55 percent, MISC increased 2.17 percent, MRDIY was up 0.48 percent, Petronas Chemicals improved 1.76 percent, PPB Group accelerated 4.88 percent, Press Metal spiked 5.16 percent, Public Bank fell 0.22 percent, RHB Capital perked 1.05 percent, Sime Darby rose 0.87 percent, Sime Darby Plantations gained 1.46 percent, Telekom Malaysia soared 5.31 percent, Tenaga Nasional jumped 4.52 percent and Top Glove advanced 0.60 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened mixed on Thursday but quickly turned higher and maintained a largely positive bias throughout the day, ending near session highs.

The Dow spiked 322.55 points or 0.98 percent to finish at 33,291.78, while the NASDAQ surged 207.74 points or 1.67 percent to end at 12,639.27 and the S&P 500 jumped 58.35 points or 1.41 percent to end at 4,199.12.

The strength that emerged on Wall Street came as traders looked ahead to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech in the Jackson Hole Symposium later today.

Powell is widely expected to reiterate the central bank's hawkish stance, given the expectations that inflation in the U.S. will be persistent and it will take time to contain it. That has already largely been priced into the markets, however.

On the economic front, the Labor Department said the U.S. economy contracted an annualized 0.6 percent in the second quarter, following a 1.6 percent drop a quarter earlier. Also, the Labor Department said initial jobless claims dropped more than expected last week.

Crude oil futures settled lower Thursday, after posting gains in the previous two sessions. Oil prices fell as traders weighed the prospects for the return of Iranian oil to the market. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures ended lower by $2.37 or 2.5 percent at $92.52 a barrel.