The stock market reacted negatively to the slump on Wall Street overnight to start the day at 1,423.90 points, just 2.21 points below yesterday’s close of 1,426.11.

It retreated another 1.58 points to settle at 1,422.32 points 11 minutes into the day’s trading session as concerns over the US banking sector returned ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rate later today.

On the other hand, the same concerns over the US interest rate helped the ringgit to open slightly higher against the US dollar.

The local note started the day at 4.4570/4.4600 to the dollar, up from yesterday’s close of 4.4640/4.4640.