KUALA LUMPUR (May 1): The FBM KLCI fell 11 points or 0.64%, weighed down by banking and plantation stocks, amid dampened performance in China share markets.

Reuters reported Chinese shares tumbled more than 8% on Monday, amid renewed fears about the outlook for the world's No. 2 economy, reviving the spectre of a full-blown market crash that prompted unprecedented government intervention earlier this month.

The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen plunged 8.6% to 3,818.73, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 8.5% to 3,725.56 points.

Malaysia's KLCI closed at 1,709.76 points at 5pm. This came on losses in banking stocks like CIMB Group Holdings Bhd and RHB Capital Bhd. Areca Capital Sdn Bhd's chief executive officer Danny Wong said: “The KLCI was dragged (down) by banking stocks today."

The KLCI also fell on losses in plantation shares like Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KLK) and PPB Group Bhd, as palm oil prices declined. Palm oil prices dropped after cargo surveyor Intertek Testing said Malaysian palm oil exports fell 18% between July 1 and 25, from a month earlier.

Today, Bursa Malaysia saw 2.22 billion shares, worth RM1.78 billion, traded. Decliners beat gainers at 609 versus 290.

The top decliner was KLK, while British American Tobacco (M) Bhd led gainers. The counter with the highest trade volume was newly-listed Ikhmas Jaya Group Bhd.

In currency markets, the ringgit weakened to 3.8200 against the US dollar, and depreciated to 2.7917 versus the Singapore dollar.

Reuters reported most emerging Asian currencies eased on Monday, amid caution ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting, while weak commodity prices sent the Malaysian ringgit and the Indonesian rupiah to 17-year lows.