KUALA LUMPUR (April 13): The FBM KLCI pared some of its loss at mid-morning today as index-linked glove makers advanced on fears of growing Covid-19 numbers.

At 10am, the FBM KLCI was down 1.03 points to 1,356.47. The index had earlier slipped to a low of 1,352.78.

Decliners led advancers by 314 to 203, while 265 counters traded unchanged. Trading volume was 813.82 million shares valued at RM330.12 million.

The top decliners included Nestle (M) Bhd, Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd, Aeon Credit Service (M) Bhd, KESM Industries Bhd, Ajinomoto (M) Bhd, Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd, PMB Technology Bhd and Time Dotcom Bhd.

The actives included Minetech Resources Bhd, Careplus Group Bhd, Bumi Armada Bhd, KNM Group Bhd, Velesto Energy Bhd, Lambo Group Bhd and LKL International Bhd.

The gainers included Chin Teck Plantations Bhd, Top Glove Corp Bhd, Allianz Malaysia Bhd, Pharmaniaga Bhd, United Plantations Bhd, Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd and Hartalega Holdings Bhd.

Reuters reported that oil prices and US stock futures dipped in early Monday trade as a landmark agreement by OPEC and its allies to slash output by a record amount failed to give investors any cause for lasting optimism about the economic outlook.

US S&P 500 mini futures dropped 1.54%, erasing a brief gain to a one-month high made right after the start of trading, it said.

Hong Leong IB Research said tracking OPEC+ decision on Sunday to broker a deal after days of discussion to slash 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd) for May-June (8 million bpd for July-December 2020) or circa 10% of global supplies to curb Covid-19 induced selling, coupled with early signs of a flattening Covid-19 curve in Malaysia, the KLCI could still advance further towards its envisaged 1,370-1,400 resistances after undergoing a mild profit-taking pullback.

“Nevertheless, we reiterate 'Sell Into Rally' as we do not expect the hurdles to be broken in the near term and the risk to reward perspective is getting [riskier] compared with 1-2 weeks ago.

“Conversely, a decisive breakdown below immediate support near 1,346 (10D SMA) could disrupt the ongoing rally and trigger a long overdue pullback to revisit 1,300-1,315 levels,” it said.