KUALA LUMPUR (May 18): The FBM KLCI edged higher in early trade Friday and rose 0.23% in line with the uptrend at most regional markets, but gains are seen capped.

At 9.05am, the FBM KLCI added 4.29 points to 1.858.73.

The gainers included Nestle (M) Bhd, Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd, Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd, British American Tobacco (M) Bhd, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd, Hengyuan Refinng Company Bhd, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd, PPB Group Bhd and Petronas Dagangan Bhd.

Asian stocks edged up on Friday as investors kept a cautious watch on developments in U.S.-China trade negotiations, while the dollar was perched near a five-month peak against a basket of currencies thanks to the benchmark U.S. Treasury yield topping a seven-year high, according to Reuters.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.05 percent higher. The index was headed for a 1 percent loss this week, it said.

JF Apex Securities Research in a market preview said US markets ended slightly lower after President Trump doubted US-China trade talks to be successful while US Treasury yield climbed to a 7-year high.

It said that earlier, European stocks advanced with commodity and energy counters taking lead following higher oil prices.

“On the local market, the FBM KLCI lost 3.82 points to 1854.44 points.

“Following the mixed performance in the US and Europe, the FBM KLCI could take a breather from recent gains and hover below the resistance of 1880 points,” it said.