KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Financial) - Malaysian shares are expected to open
mixed to lower Monday due to a lack of fresh leads with US markets closed on
Good Friday.
"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," said Kaladher Govindan, head of research at TA Securities.
"Any technical rebound attempts in the short term should encounter strong
stale bull selling," he said in a market note.
Among stocks to watch include Malaysia's top bank Maybank after it 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 Vietnam government.
On Friday, the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) closed up 2.52 points or
0.2 percent at 1,189.06.
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.
(1 US dollar = 3.17 ringgit)
aipeng.soo@thomson.com
as/ms
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