KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 19): The FBM KLCI rose 3.56 points or 0.21% on positive performance across Asian and US share markets.

US shares gained overnight following the announcement of the Federal Reserve's meeting minutes, which indicated that next month might be the right time to raise interest rates. Such comment had given confidence to investors that the US economic recovery was on track.

"The comment that 'it may well become appropriate' to raise US interest rates in December installed confidence among investors, especially considering that this meeting took place before the exceedingly impressive employment report released at the beginning of this month," FXTM analyst Lukman Otunuga wrote in a note today.

In Malaysia, the KLCI closed at 1,660.06 points. The KLCI pared gains after reaching an intraday high of 1,664.30.

Across the region, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.07%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.41%, while South Korea's Kospi increased 1.33%.

Reuters reported that Asian shares jumped on Thursday and the US dollar backed off highs on expectations the Federal Reserve would be confident enough of the US economy to raise rates in December but would then proceed with great caution on further tightening.

Across Bursa Malaysia, 3.41 billion shares valued at RM2.11 billion were exchanged. Gainers beat decliners at 502 against 425 while 333 counters remain unchanged.

Petronas Dagangan Bhd led gainers while HCK Capital Group Bhd was the top decliner. The most-actively traded stock was Instacom Group Bhd.

(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.)