KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 2): The FBM KLCI retreated at the midday break today as losers outpaced gainers on some mild profit taking activities.

At 12.30pm, the FBM KLCI was down 5.89 points to 1,628.04.

The decliners outpaced advancers by 327 to 295, while 308 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 704.48 million shares valued at RM802.32 million.

The top losers included British American Tobacco (M) Bhd, IOI Corporation Bhd, Scientex Bhd, Allianz Malaysia Bhd, Metrod Holdings Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, Genting Bhd, Hong Leong Industries Bhd and Ibraco Bhd.

The actively traded stocks included Aemulus Holdings Bhd, IHH Healthcare Bhd, The Media Shoppe Bhd, AirAsia Bhd, IFCA MSC Bhd, UEM Sunrise Bhd and V.S. Industry Bhd.

The top groups included TAHPS Group Bhd, The Store Corporation Bhd, LTKM Bhd, Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd, Public Bank Bhd, Malaysia Building Society Bhd, KESM Industries Bhd and Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd.

Asian stocks edged up on Friday and looked likely to end the week with tiny gains, although the outlook remained grim as investors continued dumping emerging market assets as their growth expectations faded. The dollar crept higher, according to Reuters.

While Thursday's private and official surveys of China's factory sector weren't quite as bad as some had feared, a number pointed out the broader economic outlook for the region remained bleak, it said.

Hong Leong IB Research said that technically, the FBM KLCI may advance further in the near term after rebounding above 10-d/20-d/30-d SMA resistance levels, supported by bottoming up indictors. A decisive breakout above 50-d SMA or 1,638 will spur index higher to retest 1,660 (Sept 1 high) and formidable downtrend line resistance near 1,670 (daily upper Bollinger Band) zones.

"Despite near-term optimism, the FBM KLCI may witness a mild profit taking today ahead of the key US jobs data tonight after surging 38 pts since Sept 29 low of 1,595.

"Key supports are 1,620 (38.2% FR), 1,606 (30-d SMA) and 1,595. A decisive break down below 1,595 will witness further slide towards 1,575 (61.8% FR) and 1,548 (76.4% FR) territory," 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.)