KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 7): Bursa Malaysia Bhd shares rose as much as 54 sen or 5% to RM11.30 after Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced the proposed Malaysia-Singapore stock market trading link. Najib also announced the planned stamp duty exemption on shares of mid- and small cap companies listed on Bursa Malaysia.

At 10:52am, Bursa Malaysia shares pared gains at RM10.94 after 686,200 shares were traded. CIMB Investment Bank Bhd wrote in a note today that CIMB retained its 'hold' call on Bursa Malaysia shares with an unchanged target price of RM10.40.

"We are positive on the proposed exemption of stamp duty on shares of mid/small cap companies and a trading link between Bursa and SGX (Singapore Exchange). The trading link would restore Bursa's connection with SGX following the decommissioning of ASEAN Trading Link.

"However, the impact would not be significant as investors are already able to trade shares in other countries through stockbrokers with a regional presence. A 1% increase in market trading value would raise Bursa's FY18-20F net profit by about 0.7%, based on our estimate," CIMB said.