KUALA LUMPUR (May 28): The FBM KLCI pared some of its losses at mid-morning today and was down 0.43%, dragged by select index-linked blue chips.

At 10am, the FBM KLCI was down 7.64 points to 1,789.76. The index had earlier slipped to a low of 1,782.11.

Losers led gainers by 321 to 229, while 242 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 564.48 million shares valued at RM324.04 million.

The top losers included Nestle (M) Bhd, Petronas Dagangan Bhd, IHH Healthcare Bhd, Sime Darby Bhd, PPB Group Bhd, Dialog Group Bhd, Favelle Favco Bhd, Perak Corp Bhd, Time Dotcom Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Bhd.

The actives included Sapura Energy Bhd, My E.G.Services Bhd, NetX Holdings Bhd, Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd and Borneo Oil Bhd.

The gainers included Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd, SAM Engineering & Equipment Bhd, Ideal Jacobs (Malaysia) Corp Bhd, Apex Healthcare Bhd, Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd, Oriental Holdings Bhd, Chemical Company of Malaysia Bhd and LPI Capital Bhd.

U.S. stock futures rose on Monday on signs that the United States and North Korea are still working towards holding a summit next month, while oil prices extended losses on expectations of more supply from major producers, according to Reuters.

The euro edged up from a 6-1/2-month low but is seen vulnerable after efforts to form a coalition government in Italy, the currency bloc's third-biggest economy, collapsed over the weekend, it said.

Hong Leong IB Research in a traders’ brief said on the Wall Street, it still maintains neutral on the outlook as there are still some overhang issues on the trade war as well as the Trump-Kim summit.

“Traders may focus on the upcoming statistics such as Chinese PMI and US jobs report that will be coming out on Thursday and Friday, respectively.

“On the local front, we expect the market sentiment to stay sideways until further clarity on the action plan on the national debt status by Pakatan Harapan, coupled with the details on the review of mega construction projects and toll concessions.

“Meanwhile, traders could focus on defensive sectors such as consumer and REITs under this cautious environment,” it said.