KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 26): The main index of Bursa Malaysia got off to a muted start today in line with regional markets as local investors digested the implications of Agong's rejection of the prime minister's attempt to seek the declaration of an emergency, while MR DIY Group (M) Bhd made an impressive debut on the Main Market of Bursa.

At 9.10am, the FBM KLCI had shed 1.85 points to 1,492.79.

The early decliners included Mi Technovation Bhd, Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd and Bursa Malaysia Bhd.

Newly listed MR DIY rose 16 sen to RM1.76, with 117.98 million shares traded.

Bloomberg said US equity futures started the week on the back foot as a US stimulus deal remained elusive and coronavirus infections hit a record for a second day.

Asian stocks saw modest gains, it reported.

Rakuten Trade in its daily market report said Covid-19 is set to dominate trading activities as the world is experiencing a spike in numbers while traders are sidelined on Wall Street.

It said the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed flat at around the 28,300 level, while the futures had weakened by more than 100 points at the time of writing.

“Hence, we believe regional markets will be mixed but the local bourse should see some rebound today.

“We expect the KLCI to trend higher today as many heave a sigh of relief with the proposed emergency averted.

“As such, we expect the KLCI to trend above the 1,500 mark today but [the uptrend] may be limited by regional volatility,” it said.