KUALA LUMPUR (March 8): The FBM KLCI staged a mild technical rebound at mid-morning today and rose 0.4%, lifted by select blue chips.

At 10.05am, the FBM KLCI rose 7.40 points to 1,845.30.

Gainers led losers by 406 to 179, while 291 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 645.65 million shares valued at RM331.61 million.

The top gainers included Nestle (M) Bhd, Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd, Hengyuan Refining Company Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd, Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd, Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd, Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd, Petronas Dagangan Bhd, LPI Capital Bhd and MISC Bhd.

The actives included QES Group Bhd, SKH Consortium Bhd, Sapura Energy Bhd, HB Global Ltd, Sino Hua-An International Bhd and Diversified Gateway Solutions Bhd.

The losers included Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd, MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd, Ta Win Holdings Bhd, Tong Herr Resources Bhd and Encorp Bhd.

Asian shares found relief on Thursday as fears about a global trade war amid U.S. President Donald Trump's push to introduce protectionist tariffs were tempered by signs the move could include carve-outs for key partners, according to Reuters.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.2 percent, led by gains in South Korean shares, which also benefited from signs of easing tensions between the two Koreas. Japan's Nikkei gained one percent, it said.

Hong Leong IB Research in a traders’ brief said that in the US, market participants are focusing on the tariffs threat, which may lead to a full-blown trade war, coupled with the surprise move by Gary Cohn could extend the selling pressure over the near term.

“Also, market skittishness may persist as European Union has responded with preparing punitive steps on iconic US goods, if Trump continues with his implementation of the import tariffs.

“On the local front, following the extreme sell down on small cap stocks, we think there could be opportunities to scoop up oversold shares for short term trading.

“Nevertheless, sentiment is likely to stay cautious with the potential emergence of a trade war. Also, traders will be focusing on the ongoing parliament and the status of the upcoming GE14. At this juncture, we opine that the FBM KLCI's upside will be set along 1,860,” it said.