KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 3): The FBM KLCI stayed in negative territory at mid-morning today in line with the weakness at regional markets.

At 10am, the FBM KLCI was down 1.20 points at 1,675.57.

The top losers included Lingkaran Trans Kota Holdings Bhd, Hartalega Holdings Bhd, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, UMW Holdings Bhd, Guinness Anchor Bhd, PPB Group Bhd and Time Dotcom Bhd.

The actives included 1 Utopia Bhd, XOX Bhd, Wintoni Group Bhd, Instacom Group Bhd, Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd, Kim Teck Cheong Consolidated Bhd and Frontken Corporation Bhd.

The gainers included Petronas Gas Bhd, Ajinomoto (Malaysia) Bhd, British American Tobacco (M) Bhd, Petronas Dagangan Bhd, Panasonic Malaysia Manufacturing Bhd, Tasco Bhd and SWS Capital Bhd.

Asian stocks slipped and the dollar advanced on Thursday after hawkish-sounding comments from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen further reinforced the case for an interest rate hike later this month, according to Reuters.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.2%, taking an early lead from Wall Street. The Dow shed 0.9% and the S&P 500 lost 1.1% overnight on Yellen's comments and falling crude prices that hit energy shares, it said.

Hong Leong IB Research said that ahead of the crucial European Central Bank (ECB) and Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meetings, the release of the US jobs data and volatile overseas markets, the FBM KLCI is likely to witness some volatility in the near term.

"Key supports are 1,650–1,663 while resistances are 1,695–1,700 territory.

"We reiterate our view that any downside risk will be well-cushioned by the seasonal year-end window dressing activities, ValueCap factor, potential ECB stimulus coupled with further monetary easing from the People's Bank of China (PBOC)," it said.

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company's profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)