KUALA LUMPUR (April 4): The FBM KLCI rose 1.7 points or 0.1% on late buying of index-linked Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KLK) shares.

The KLCI erased losses in the final trading minutes after falling with Asian shares following overnight US equity losses.

At 5pm today, the KLCI settled at 1,747.19 points after falling to its intraday low at 1,742.85 points. KLK shares rose 22 sen to RM24.92 to become Bursa Malaysia's sixth-largest gainer.

Across Bursa Malaysia, 3.97 billion shares valued at RM2.87 billion were traded. Gainers outpaced decliners by 533 versus 384 respectively.

Payment-solutions specialist GHL Systems Bhd shares added 34 sen to RM1.48 to become Bursa Malaysia's eighth most-active stock and second-largest gainer.

Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd analyst Loui Low Ley Yee told theedgemarkets.com: “Technology and electronic commerce-related stocks are the theme now. We keep seeing increasing interest in small-capitalisation counters, especially those that are on the ACE Market.”

Asian shares fell. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended 0.91% lower while South Korea's Kospi fell 0.3%. China markets were closed today for the Ching Ming Festival.

In overnight US share trades, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.14% while S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite each fell 0.26%.

Reuters reported that Asian shares inched lower on Tuesday as caution reigned ahead of a potentially tense meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping later this week.

Wall Street fell on Monday as investor worries intensified about the Trump administration's struggles to deliver on its pro-business policies a few weeks before the first-quarter earnings season.