Malaysia Bourse May Reverse Thursday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market on Thursday ended the two-day winning streak in which it had climbed more than 20 points or 1.2 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just beneath the 1,700-point plateau although it may inch higher again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher on conflicting messages about the status of the war in the Middle East. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and flat and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the financial shares, gains from the plantations and a mixed picture from the telecoms.

For the day, the index sank 10.60 point or 0.62 percent to finish at 1,698.30 after trading between 1,688.89 and 1,712.80. Among the actives, 99 Speed Mart Retail tumbled 2.65 percent, while AMMB Holdings tanked 3.13 percent, Axiata rallied 1.35 percent, Celcomdigi lost 0.99 percent, CIMB Group skidded 1.56 percent, IOI Corporation improved 1.42 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong jumped 1.67 percent, Maxis and Tenaga Nasional both slipped 0.57 percent, Maybank contracted 1.72 percent, MISC added 0.24 percent, Nestle Malaysia retreated 1.83 percent, Petronas Chemicals skyrocketed 10.56 percent, Petronas Dagangan plunged 4.09 percent, Petronas Gas sank 1.20 percent, PPB Group spiked 2.18 percent, Press Metal declined 1.76 percent, Public Bank dropped 1.26 percent, RHB Bank shed 1.04 percent, Sime Darby fell 0.88 percent, SD Guthrie soared 2.33 percent, Sunway stumbled 2.90 percent, Sunway Healthcare plummeted 6.10 percent, Telekom Malaysia dipped 0.42 percent, YTL Power surged 3.90 percent and Gamuda, IHH Healthcare, YTL Corporation and MRDIY were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is flat to higher as the major averages opened lower on Thursday but quickly bounced higher and hugged the line for most of the day, ending mixed and little changed.

The Dow slipped 61.07 points or 0.13 percent to finish at 46,504.67, while the NASDAQ added 38.23 points or 0.18 percent to end at 21,879.18 and the S&P 500 rose 7.37 points or 0.11 percent to close at 6,582.69.

For the holiday-shortened week, the NASDAQ spiked 4.4 percent, the S&P 500 surged 3.4 percent and the Dow jumped 3 percent.

The early weakness on Wall Street came amid renewed concerns about an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East following President Donald Trump's primetime address Wednesday night.

However, stocks bounced well off their worst levels after a report from Iranian state news said Iran and Oman are drafting a protocol to "monitor transit" through the Strait of Hormuz.

Crude oil prices catapulted Thursday on concerns of supply disruptions following Trump's address. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was up $11.94 or 11.93 percent at $112.06 per barrel.