KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 21): The FBM KLCI closed 6.94 points or 0.38% higher, while value across Bursa Malaysia climbed to RM3.61 billion as investors reckoned that the China-US trade war appeared to be less harsh than expected.

At 5pm, the KLCI ended at 1,810.64 points as KLCI-linked companies Dialog Group Bhd, Malayan Banking Bhd and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd emerged among Bursa Malaysia's most-active stocks.

Inter-Pacific Securities Sdn Bhd head of research Pong Teng Siew said the KLCI’s performance reflects the sentiment shared by global markets that the trade war appears to be less harsh than expected.

“However there is no assurance that sentiment won’t turn around tomorrow. It seems to fluctuate on a daily basis. Perhaps the reason for the improved sentiment is because markets had been bracing itself for something worse instead. Let’s just hope that the positive market reaction is sustained,” Pong told theedgemarkets.com.

Across Bursa Malaysia today, 2.07 billion shares were traded for RM3.61 billion. Yesterday's volume and value stood at 1.94 billion shares and RM2.02 billion respectively.

Today, Malaysian shares rose with Asian stocks. Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 0.82% higher while South Korea's Kospi added 0.68%. In China, the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite closed up 2.5% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.73%.

Reuters reported that Asian stocks extended gains on Friday thanks to Wall Street scoring all-time highs, as investors gravitated to the view that the latest exchange of tariffs between the United States and China may be less damaging than initially feared.

A rally in Chinese markets helped lift the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan by 1.15 percent, buoyed in part by expectations that Beijing will pump more stimulus into its economy to weather the trade war. The MSCI index has rebounded 4.6 percent from a 14-month low on Sept 12.