KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 14): The FBM KLCI further pared its gains at the midday break as market sentiment turned negative as bears took control.

At 12.30pm, the FBM KLCI was up 0.17 points to 1,842.25. The index had earlier risen to its intra-morning high of 1,846.31.

Losers outpaced gainers by 404 to 294, while 310 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 1.14 billion shares valued at RM885.67 million.

The top gainers included Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd, United Plantations Bhd, Carlsberg Brewery (M) Bhd, MISC Bhd, Shell Refining Company (Federation of Malaya) Bhd, Tasco Bhd, Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd and DiGi.Com Bhd.

The actively traded stocks included Bioalpha Holdings Bhd, Xinghe Holdings Bhd, Frontken Corporation Bhd, Systech Bhd, Kanger International Bhd, Kronologi Asia Bhd and IFCA MSC Bhd.

The top decliners included RHB Capital Bhd, IHH Healthcare Bhd, British American Tobacco (M) Bhd, Scientex Bhd, Petronas Chemicals Bhd and Westports Holdings Bhd.

Chinese shares extended their meteoric ascent to reach new heights on Tuesday, while much of the rest of Asia took a breather after recent hefty gains, according to Reuters.

A surprise decision by Singapore's central bank not to ease policy gave a boost to emerging currencies in the region and prompted profit taking on crowded positions in the US dollar, it said.

Maybank IB head of retail research and chief chartist Lee Cheng Hooi in a note to clients today said the FBM KLCI fell 2.23 points to 1,842.08 yesterday, while the FBMEMAS and FBM100 also closed lower by 14.36 points and 19.26 points, respectively.

He said that in terms of market breadth, the gainer-to-loser ratio was 469-to-377 while 318 counters were unchanged, adding that a total of 2.12 billion shares were traded valued at RM1.87 billion.

“We recommend a “Nibble on Dips” stance for the index. The KLCI Apr Futures moved into a 4.08-point discount against the FBM KLCI.

“We expect some buying at the supports of 1,829 to 1,840, whilst profit-taking activities will cap rebounds at the resistances of 1,842 and 1,859,” he said.