The Malaysia stock market has tracked lower in two straight sessions, sinking almost 25 points or 1.5 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,615-point plateau although it may find traction on Monday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher, with optimism again limited by bond yield concerns. The European and U.S. markets were mixed and the Asian markets figure to open in similar fashion.
The KLCI finished modestly lower on Friday following losses from the financial shares, plantation stocks and industrials.
For the day, the index sank 13.72 points or 0.84 percent to finish at the daily low of 1,615.69 after peaking at 1,632.01. Volume was 9.632 billion shares worth 5.510 billion ringgit. There were 630 gainers and 529 decliners.
Among the actives, Axiata advanced 0.81 percent, while CIMB Group plunged 2.83 percent, Dialog Group declined 1.21 percent, Digi.com retreated 1.35 percent, Genting added 0.69 percent, Genting Malaysia surged 1.79 percent, Hartalega Holdings dipped 0.61 percent, IHH Healthcare tumbled 2.07 percent, IOI Corporation shed 0.94 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong slid 0.69 percent, Maybank skidded 1.75 percent, Maxis sank 1.09 percent, MISC was down 0.14 percent, Petronas Chemicals jumped 0.85 percent, Petronas Dagangan spiked 1.60 percent, PPB Group weakened 0.21 percent, Press Metal perked 0.73 percent, Public Bank slipped 0.21 percent, RHB Capital dropped 1.08 percent, Sime Darby lost 0.85 percent, Sime Darby Plantations fell 0.81 percent, Supermax plummeted 3.09 percent, Telekom Malaysia surrendered 1.15 percent, Top Glove tanked 2.26 percent and Tenaga Nasional was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street continues to be a dichotomy as the Dow opened higher and remained so on its way to a record closing high. The NASDAQ and S&P opened in the red, although the latter inched into the green by the session's close.
The Dow jumped 293.05 points or 0.90 percent to finish at 32,778.64, while the NASDAQ sank 78.81 points or 0.59 percent to end at 13,319.86 and the S&P 500 rose 4.00 points or 0.10 percent to close at 3,943.34. For the week, the Dow spiked 4.1 percent, the NASDAQ jumped 3.1 percent and the S&P gained 2.6 percent.
The continued advance by the Dow came as traders expressed optimism about the economy reopening after President Joe Biden directed states to make all adults eligible for a coronavirus vaccine by May 1. The vaccine news combined with the new $1.9 trillion stimulus package led to hopes for a return to normalcy after a year of the coronavirus pandemic.
Meanwhile, the economic optimism also led to a spike in treasury yields, with the ten-year yield surging above 1.6 percent to reach its highest levels in a year - which resulted in selling pressure for the tech-heavy NASDAQ.
In economic news, the University of Michigan said U.S. consumer sentiment improved more than expected in March, hitting a one-year index high.
Crude oil prices fluctuated on Friday as traders remained optimistic about the outlook for energy demand but seemed reluctant to continue pushing oil prices higher. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery closed down $0.41 at $65.61 a barrel.
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