KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 18): The FBM KLCI closed 17.11 points or 1.10% higher at its intraday high of 1,577.8 points after a final hour jump, as bargain hunters returned for glove makers that had recently succumbed to profit taking.

At a glance, notable KLCI movers included Top Glove Corp Bhd and Hartalega Holdings Bhd.

Top Glove’s shares price reversed losses from the past two days, closing up 16.32% or RM3.66 at RM26.08, while Hartalega's share price ended 12.85% or RM2 higher at RM17.56. Both Top Glove and Hartalega were among the biggest gainers on the local bourse today.

The other glove counters also made it to the top gainer list today, including Supermax Corp Bhd, which spiked 24.55% or RM4.10 to RM20.80, Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd, which jumped 16.96% or RM2.32 to RM16, and Rubberex Corp Bhd, which rallied 29.86% or RM1.29 at RM5.61. 

Bursa Malaysia’s Healthcare Index, which includes rubber glove manufacturers, was the largest percentage gainer among Bursa indices. The index closed up 9.85% or 360.04 points at 4,016.21 compared to 3,647.88 previously.

MIDF Research head of research Imran Yassin Md Yusof said the gains posted by glove makers today were due to bargain-hunting activities following the recent selldown.

“Fundamentally, the glove stocks still are attractive as we will be still living with Covid-19 until the vaccine for the virus is found.

“Until the vaccine is discovered, I expect the glove counters, especially Top Glove and Hartalega, to continue to drive the movement of KLCI going forward,” Imran told theedgemarkets.com.

Nonetheless, Imran believes the volatility in the market will persist, given the uncertainty of the impact from the pandemic, and coupled with the growing tension between the US-China spat as well as pending the outcome of the US presidential election in November this year.

Across Bursa Malaysia, 10.6 billion shares changed hands for RM6.92 billion. In comparison, Bursa volume stood at 8.8 billion securities worth RM4.95 billion yesterday.

The market breadth was positive, as gainers outpaced decliners, with 635 against 409.

Across Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 dipped 0.2%, while South Korea's Kospi dropped 2.46%. In China, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index inched up 0.08% while the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index rose 0.36%.

Reuters reported that Asian shares made cautious gains on Tuesday as the lift from Wall Street's tech-fueled rally was checked by investors' fresh concerns about Sino-US tensions.

“The Trump administration announced on Monday it would further tighten restrictions on China's Huawei Technologies Co, aimed at cracking down on its access to commercially available chips, a move set to disrupt global supply chains.

“However, sentiment was supported by the Nasdaq, which surged to a record high close on Monday and the S&P 500, which approached its own record level, both lifted by technology stocks,” the report added.