KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 2): The main index of Bursa Malaysia pared some of its gains in the mid-morning today but stayed up 1.14%, tracking regional markets.

At 10am, the FBM KLCI was up 18.10 points at 1,584.50. The index earlier rose to a high of 1,585.00.

Gainers led losers by 455 to 421, while 405 counters traded unchanged. Trading volume was 2.16 billion shares valued at RM1.3 billion.

The gainers included Petronas Dagangan Bhd (PetDag), Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd, Hartalega Holdings Bhd, KESM Industries Bhd, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KLK) and Tasco Bhd.

The actively traded stocks included Iris Corp Bhd, Trive Property Group Bhd, GPA Holdings Bhd, AT Systematization Bhd, Velesto Energy Bhd and Metronic Global Bhd.

The decliners included Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd (F&N), Amtel Holdings Bhd, Toyo Ventures Holdings Bhd, ViTrox Corp Bhd, Sarawak Consolidated Industries Bhd, Panasonic Manufacturing Malaysia Bhd and Menang Corp (M) Bhd.

Reuters said Asian markets looked set for a modestly firmer start today as global markets faced another chaotic week, with retail investors expanding their duel with Wall Street into commodities and driving up the price of silver.

In early Asian trade, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 benchmark was up 0.81% and South Korea's KOSPI up 0.79%, adding to a rally in the previous session. Japan's Nikkei futures rose 0.6% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index futures eased 0.1%, it said.

Rakuten Trade said notwithstanding a stronger closing, volatility reigned on Wall Street as sentiments were affected by the GameStop saga.

It said the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 229 points to top the 30,000 level but was still off by 100 points from the day's high.

“As for the local bourse, we would expect some rebound today after a frenzy session last Friday as the index ended at 1,566 after having nearly touched the 1,600 mark during the early session.

“We would expect investors to bargain hunt on a broader basis today, thus the KLCI is seen to possibly test the 1,575 level today.

“Meanwhile, crude palm oil remains rather solid with prices rebounding to almost the RM4,000/metric tonne again,” it said.