KUALA LUMPUR (April 27): The FBM KLCI broke a two-day gaining streak to close lower in cautious trading today in line with the trend in most regional markets.

The benchmark index closed 16.79 points or 1.03% lower at 1,606.68.

Areca Capital Sdn Bhd CEO Danny Wong said the generally bearish sentiment was also seen in other regional markets, as cautious investors awaited the outcome of the upcoming US Federal Reserve meeting.

Wong said the KLCI's decline was also caused by profit-taking in several stocks.

They included glove counters Hartalega Holdings Bhd (down 4.29% or 48 sen at RM10.70) and Supermax Corp Bhd (2.87% or 18 sen lower at RM6.10), as well as Digi.Com Bhd (down 3.22% or 14 sen at RM4.12).

Gainers among KLCI constituents included Axiata Group Bhd (up 1.04% or four sen at RM3.87) and Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (up 0.09% or two sen at RM21.80).

On the broader market, some 7.17 billion shares worth RM5 billion were traded. Losers outnumbered gainers 686 to 415 while 437 other counters closed unchanged.

The top actively traded stock was Focus Dynamics Group Bhd with 786.73 million shares traded, followed by Kanger International Bhd and Careplus Group Bhd. Top gainers were Teo Guan Lee Corp Bhd, Pecca Group Bhd and Malpac Holdings Bhd, while the top losers were Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd, Hartalega and Petronas Dagangan Bhd.

Asian stocks lacked direction today as a surge in virus cases in the region and the Federal Reserve’s meeting this week kept investors on the edge, Reuters reported.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index was down 0.46% or 134.34 points at 28,991.89, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.04% or 11.29 points to 28,941.54. The Shanghai Composite was, however, up 0.04% or 1.43 points at 3,442.61, and Singapore's Straits Time Index was up 0.24% or 7.64 points at 3,212.54.