KUALA LUMPUR (July 23): The FBM KLCI pared some of its gains at mid-morning Thursday, while Bioalpha Holdings Bhd rose to its highest level since November 2018 on bagging a RM2.1 billion contract in China.
At 10am, the FBM KLCI was up 7.40 points to 1,594.38. The index had earlier risen to a high of 1,598.12.
Market breadth was positive as gainers led losers by 438 to 289, while 404 counters traded unchanged. Trading volume was 3.42 billion shares valued at RM1.64 billion.
The top gainers included Top Glove Corp Bhd, Pharmaniaga Holdings Bhd, Duopharma Biotech Bhd, Supermax Corp Bhd, Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd, Careplus Group Bhd, Apex Healthcare Bhd and Bursa Malaysia Bhd.
Among the actively traded stocks were Bioalpha, Eduspec Holdings Bhd, PDZ Holdings Bhd, XOX Bhd, Priceworth International Bhd, DGB Asia Bhd and Careplus.
Bioalpha rose 6 sen to 24 sen.
The decliners included Nestle (M) Bhd, Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd, Sunway Construction Group Bhd and JF Technology Bhd.
Bloomberg said Asia stocks opened modestly lower on Thursday as investors weighed doubts on the timing of a new US spending bill and concern about an escalation of tensions with China.
The US dollar continued to edge lower, near the weakest since March, it said.
Hong Leong IB Research said in a nutshell, it is mindful of downside risks to the domestic economy and corporate earnings amid soaring fears of a second wave of infections, intensifying US-China geopolitical tensions coupled with lingering political uncertainty.
“Moreover, with Top Glove and Hartalega Holdings Bhd collectively contributing about 12% of the FBM KLCI’s market capitalization as of yesterday, volatility in their share prices will continue to influence KLCI's short-term performance.
“We expect an extended healthy market consolidation to neutralize overbought technical momentum for a more sustained uptrend going forward.
“Key resistances are 1,600, 1,617, and 1,633 levels whilst supports fall at 1,563, 1,546, and 1,525 zones," it said.