KUALA LUMPUR (April 14): The FBM KLCI reversed earlier losses to close marginally higher today on late buying support in selected index-linked counters.  

The benchmark index however ended below the 1,600 mark at 1,598.28, for a 0.57-point or 0.04% gain, after moving berween 1,592.87 and 1,601.37.

Heavyweight counters that helped pushed the KLCI higher included Supermax Corp Bhd, Hap Seng Consolidated Bhd, Dialog Group Bhd, Top Glove Corp Bhd and IOI Corp Bhd.

Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong attributed the last-minute buying to bargain hunting.

He said Bursa Malaysia's Energy and Healthcare indices saw bigger rises, with the Energy Index up 1.34% to 925.87 and the Healthcare Index up 1.26% to 3,045.17.

Energy stocks rose as oil prices continued to trend higher, Leong told theedgemarkets. Brent crude futures rose 85 cents, or 1.3%, to US$64.52 a barrel by 0619 GMT, after gaining 39 cents on Tuesday, after industry data showed US inventories declined more than expected and OPEC raised its outlook for oil demand.

“For the Healthcare Index, it was lifted by rubber glove makers on rising trends for Covid-19 cases globally," Leong said. "Also, it was reported that the US has called for a pause on Covid-19 vaccine  produced by Johnson and Johnson after blood clotting cases were found. This may likely to slow down the vaccination rollout in the US.”

Market breadth was mixed with losers leading gainers by 500 to 510, while 478 counters closed unchanged. Trading volume was 5.91 billion shares valued at RM2.99 billion, compared with yesterday’s 6.35 billion shares worth RM3.05 billion.

Notable gainers included BLD Plantations Bhd, Dataprep Holdings Bhd, HengYuan Refining Co Bhd, Fraser and Neave Holdings Bhd, Dufu Technology Corp Bhd, Vitrox Corp Bhd, Alcom Group Bhd and Hap Seng Consolidated Bhd.

Top losers included Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd (MPI), Nestle (M) Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, Aeon Credit Service (M) Bhd and Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd.

Minda Global Bhd topped the active list for the second day, with 413.81 million shares traded. However, it faced heavy selldown on profit taking after yesterday’s strong gains, closing 2.5 sen or 14.29% lower at 15 sen.

Other active stocks included Lambo Group Bhd, Widad Group Bhd, Ucrest Bhd, LKL International Bhd, Dagang NeXchange Bhd and Focus Dynamics Group Bhd.

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 slid 0.44%, while Seoul's Kospi rose 0.42%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.42% and Shanghai's Composite Index closed up 0.6%.

Reuters reported that most Asia-Pacific share indexes followed Wall Street higher, with Hang Seng leading gains in the region, while benchmark US Treasury yields continued their decline, marking a fresh three-week low.