KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Financial) - Malaysian shares were little changed in
early trading Monday amid a lack of fresh leads but the country's top bank
Maybank edged higher after it announced an acquisition in Vietnam.
At 9.33 am (0133 GMT), the Kuala Lumpur Composite index (KLCI) was up 2.98
points or 0.3 percent at 1,192.04.
The FTSE Bursa Malaysia 30-large cap index rose 21.9 points or 0.3 percent
to 7,935.43 and the FTSE Bursa Malaysia second board index added 13.93 points or
0.3 percent to 5,657.
Advancers led decliners 120 to 87 with 121 stocks unchanged and 1,038
counters untraded.
Trading volume was 47.68 million shares, valued at 63.04 million ringgit.
The near-term outlook for the Malaysian market remains cautious, said
Kenanga Research.
"The impact from the US housing woes and uncertainty in the local political
scene should
continue to provide a cap on the performance of the local market in the short
term," the research house said in a client note.
The KLCI has dropped by more than 8 percent over the past two weeks as
investors shunned the Malaysian market following the country's general elections
on March 8 where the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition lost five states and its
two-thirds majority in parliament to the opposition.
Technical indicators suggest that the KLCI may drift further in the near
term, said Kaladher Govindan, head of research at TA Securities.
"Continued uncertainty over the domestic political situation and with
plunging global commodities expected to depress crude palm oil prices, further
downside pressure remains a real possibility," Kaladher said in a client note.
"Any technical rebound attempts in the short term should encounter strong
stale bull selling," he said.
Maybank gained 25 sen or 2.9 percent to 8.85 ringgit.
On Friday, Maybank said it will pay 430 million ringgit for 15 percent of
Vietnam's An Binh Commercial Joint Stock Bank. Maybank said it may raise its
equity interest in the Vietnamese bank to 20 percent, pending approval by the
Vietnamese government.
Among other market heavyweights, Sime Darby, the world's largest oil palm
grower, dropped 5 sen or 0.6 percent to 9.00 ringgit.
State-owned Telekom Malaysia gained 10 sen or 0.9 percent to 10.90 ringgit
and national power utility Tenaga was steady at 6.80 ringgit.
The Malaysian ringgit was quoted at 3.1945/1950 against the US dollar in
early trading.
aipeng.soo@thomson.com
as/ms
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