KUALA LUMPUR (March 20): Malaysian stocks staged a mild rebound Friday tracking the higher overnight close at Wall Street, while index-linked finance sector stocks helped prop up the FBM KLCI 0.87%.

Investor sentiment at the local market also received a boost after  Bank Negara Malaysia announced a 100-basis-point cut in the statutory reserve requirement (SRR) ratio from 3% to 2%, effective March 20, in move to release RM30 billion into the banking system.

At 9.05am, the FBM KLCI rose 10.76 points to 1,230.48.

The top gainers in early trade included Heineken Malaysia Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, Public Bank Bhd, Ajinomoto (M) Bhd, LPI Capital Bhd and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd.

Reuters said Asian shares sought a reprieve on Friday as Wall Street eked out gains, bonds rallied and oil boasted its biggest bounce on record, though a panicked rush into U.S. dollars suggested the crisis was far from done.

As the spread of the coronavirus brought much of the world to a halt, nations have poured ever-more-massive amounts of stimulus into their economies while central banks have showered markets with cheap dollars to ease funding strains, it said.

JF Apex Securities Research said US markets recovered from intraday losses to post gains as energy and technology counters led the rebound after oil prices jumped over 20%.

It said that earlier, European stocks surged after measures announced by Bank of England and European Central Bank to help support the economy.

“On the local market, the FBM KLCI plunged 19.29 points to 1219.72 points.

“Following gains in the US and European markets, the FBM KLCI could stage a rebound with resistance at 1280 points,” it said.