KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 15): The FBM KLCI closed 3.26 points or 0.19% higher after an 11th hour spike due to the sharp rise in Public Bank Bhd's share price in the final minutes of trading.

Malaysian shares also took cue from Asian equity gains in anticipation of China's stimulus, which include proposed tax cuts.

At Bursa Malaysia, the KLCI closed at 1,679.42 at 5pm. KLCI-linked Public Bank shares rose 28 sen to RM24.98.

“Our country is highly exposed to developments in China, considering it is one of our biggest trade partners among other Asian markets,” Inter-Pacific Securities Sdn Bhd head of research Pong Teng Siew told theedgemarkets.com.

Bloomberg reported that shares in Hong Kong and Shanghai were among the biggest gainers after senior Chinese economic policy officials vowed tax cuts to boost growth, while lending data from the country suggested December estimates may be exceeded. Reuters reported that Asian stocks rose on Tuesday, supported by a bounce in Chinese shares amid hopes for government stimulus, while sterling braced for the vote in Parliament over the British Government's plan to exit the European Union.

In China, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed up 2.02% while the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite rose 1.36%. Elsewhere, Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 0.96%.

At Bursa Malaysia, the KLCI closed higher after being in the red for most of the trading period today. The KLCI had earlier fallen to its intraday low at 1,672.55 after crude oil prices fell more than 2% overnight on Monday.

Across Bursa Malaysia today, Petronas Dagangan Bhd and Petronas Gas Bhd closed among top decliners. Leading gainers included Selangor Properties Bhd and Public Bank.