The Malaysia stock market headed south again on Wednesday, one day after it had ended the two-day slide in which it had stumbled nearly 50 points or 3 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just beneath the 1,600-point plateau and little movement is expected on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky, with coronavirus concerns tempered by optimism for vaccines to treat the virus. The European and U.S. markets were mixed and little changed and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.
The KLCI finished slightly lower on Wednesday following losses from the glove makers, gains from the financials and a mixed picture from the plantations and industrials.
For the day, the index eased 3.54 points or 0.22 percent to finish at 1,598.72 after trading between 1,592.93 and 1,605.60. Volume was 9.222 billion shares worth 5.429 billion ringgit. There were 640 gainers and 557 decliners.
Among the actives, Petronas Dagangan surged 2.51 percent, while Dialog Group plummeted 2.43 percent, Axiata plunged 2.12 percent, Malaysia Airports Holdings soared 1.86 percent, Top Glove tanked 1.62 percent, Sime Darby tumbled 1.28 percent, Hong Leong spiked 1.23 percent, AMMB Holdings skidded 1.23 percent, PPB Group retreated 1.08 percent, CIMB Group rallied 1.07 percent, Sime Darby Plantations declined 0.98 percent, Maybank collected 0.98 percent, IOI Corporation jumped 0.90 percent, RHB Capital climbed 0.75 percent, Genting sank 0.72 percent, Tenaga Nasional dropped 0.55 percent, IHH Healthcare shed 0.53 percent, Hartalega Holdings lost 0.41 percent, Maxis and Genting Malaysia both fell 0.40 percent, MISC added 0.29 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong slid 0.25 percent, Digi.com was down 0.24 percent, Petronas Chemicals gained 0.14 percent, Public Bank rose 0.11 percent and Petronas Gas and Press Metal were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as stocks opened in the red on Wednesday, but the Dow and S&P 500 were able to climb barely into negative territory before the session ended.
The Dow added 59.87 points or 0.20 percent to finish at 29,883, while the NASDAQ eased 5.74 points or 0.05 percent to end at 12,349.37 and the S&P 500 rose 6.56 points or 0.18 percent to close at 3,669.01.
The early weakness on Wall Street was generated in reaction to a report from payroll processor ADP showing private sector employment in the U.S. increased by less than expected last month.
Selling pressure waned over the course of the morning, however, as traders remain optimistic about potential coronavirus vaccines. The U.K. has approved the vaccine candidate developed by Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech (BNTX), with the vaccine expected to be rolled out next week.
Traders also seem optimism lawmakers in Washington will reach an agreement on a new fiscal stimulus bill as both parties issue new proposals.
Crude oil prices moved higher on Wednesday, as data showed a drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January ended higher by $0.73 or 1.6 percent at $45.28 a barrel.
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