Malaysia Stock Market Tipped To Open In The Red

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market on Tuesday ended the three-day winning streak in which it had climbed more than 25 points or 1.5 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just beneath the 1,685-point plateau and the losses may accelerate on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on renewed hostilities in the Middle East and the corresponding jump in oil prices. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished barely higher on Tuesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, plantation stocks and telecoms.

For the day, the index eased 0.60 points or 0.04 percent to finish at 1,682.83 after trading between 1,676.94 and 1,684.19.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened mixed but quickly turned lower and spent the balance of the day under water, finishing off session lows.

The Dow sank 130.76 points or 0.25 percent to finish at 52,925.15, while the NASDAQ slumped 302.47 points or 1.16 percent to end at 25,818.69 and the S&P 500 lost 33.58 points or 0.45 percent to close at 7,503.85.

The slump by the NASDAQ came amid a sharp pullback by semiconductor stocks, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plummeting by 4.7 percent.

Gold, airline and computer hardware stocks also saw considerable weakness, while energy, pharmaceutical and healthcare stocks turned in strong performances.

Crude oil prices spiked on Tuesday as concerns of fresh U.S.-Iran conflicts surfaced after attacks on at least three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery was up $2.01 or 2.93 percent at $70.56 per barrel.

Energy stocks benefited from that sharp increase by the price of crude oil, although the spike in prices weighed on other sectors.