Rally May Stall For Malaysia Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has finished higher in two straight sessions, advancing almost 20 points or 1.1 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just beneath the 1,740-point plateau although it may run out of steam on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative amidst rising hostilities in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The KLCI finished sharply higher on Monday following gains from the financial shares, plantation stocks and telecoms.

For the day, the index climbed 17.75 points or 1.03 percent to finish at the daily high of 1,739.77 after trading as low as 1,725.01. Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail gained 0.87 percent, while AMMB Holdings vaulted 1.63 percent, Axiata strengthened 1.70 percent, Celcomdigi improved 1.33 percent, CIMB Group gathered 0.39 percent, Gamuda picked up 0.23 percent, IHH Healthcare rose 0.57 percent, IOI Corporation and Press Metal both expanded 1.62 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong elevated 0.94 percent, Maxis spiked 2.58 percent, Maybank accelerated 1.81 percent, MISC perked 0.12 percent, MRDIY tanked 2.40 percent, Nestle Malaysia plunged 4.24 percent, Petronas Chemicals tumbled 3.72 percent, Petronas Dagangan sank 0.40 percent, Petronas Gas added 1.01 percent, PPB Group dropped 2.26 percent, Public Bank advanced 1.50 percent, RHB Bank collected 0.74 percent, SD Guthrie climbed 1.61 percent, Sunway increased 1.30 percent, Telekom Malaysia rallied 1.74 percent, Tenaga Nasional jumped 1.79 percent, YTL Corporation skyrocketed 3.43 percent, YTL Power surged 3.40 percent and Sime Darby and Sunway Healthcare were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened mixed on Monday but quickly headed south and finished solidly in the red.

The Dow tumbled 557.37 points or 1.13 percent to finish at 48,941.90, while the NASDAQ dropped 46.64 points or 0.19 percent to close at 25,067.80 and the S&P 500 sank 29.37 points or 0.41 percent to end at 7,200.75.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came amid a substantial increase by the price of crude oil after a social media post from the United Arab Emirates's Defense Ministry said four cruise missiles launched from Iran were detected toward various areas across the country.

A report from Reuters indicating a fire broke out at a major oil industry zone in the U.A.E. following an Iranian drone attack also added to concerns about a re-escalation of the Middle East conflict.

Iranian state media also claimed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps hit a U.S. warship with two missiles, although U.S. Central Command denied the report and said, "No U.S. Navy ships have been struck."

Crude oil prices skyrocketed on Monday as the Strait of Hormuz blockade continues to hold oil transit, despite the ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery was up $4.00 or 3.92 percent at $105.94 per barrel.