KUALA LUMPUR (July 28): The FBM KLCI edged up in early trade today after having started in the red in line with most regional markets.

Newly-listed Sunway Construction Group Bhd was teh most actively traded stock this morning.

At 9.11am, the FBM KLCI reversed its erlier losses and was up 0.13 points to 1,709.89.

The top gainers included British American Tobacco (M) Bhd, Petronas Dagangan Bhd, SCGM Bhd, Pestech International Bhd, AMMB Holdings Bhd, Lafarge Malaysia Bdh, IHH Healthcare Bhd, Sunway Construction Group Bhd and Berjaya Sports Toto Bhd.

Asian stocks started Tuesday under a cloud with markets waiting nervously to see how Chinese shares fare later in the session after Monday's slump all but erased risk appetite, according to Reuters.

The dollar was under pressure as China jitters spurred flows into havens such as the yen, while commodities including oil and copper wilted amid fears of a collapse in demand from China, it said.

JF Apex Securities in a market preview today said US markets declined with the Dow hitting a 6-month low after Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 8% and lower commodity prices.

Similarly, it said European bourses slumped after the selldown in Chinese markets and concern over economic growth.

“On the local bourse, the FBM KLCI dropped 11 points to 1709.76 points.

“Following the bearish sentiment, we expect the FBM KLCI to remain under foreign selling pressure and could test the immediate support level of 1705 points,” it said.