UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors head of investment research Sedek Jantan said the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) closed lower today, primarily influenced by investor anticipation of the Fed chair’s speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium at 10pm (Malaysian time) tonight.

“The annual event is a crucial platform for the central bank to outline its economic outlook and policy intentions.

“While no significant policy shifts are expected immediately following the speech, the market remains focussed on the Fed’s guidance, especially given the CME FedWatch tool’s indication of a 75.5% probability of a 25-basis point rate cut in September,” he told Bernama.

Back home, Sedek said the FBM KLCI’s performance was led by the plantation counters with the Plantation Index notching up gains.

He said this was driven by strong earnings for the second quarter of 2024 and the readiness of Malaysian producers to comply with the European Union Deforestation Regulation compared to other countries.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI closed marginally lower due to a lack of buying catalysts.

“The key regional indices trended slightly higher as the dollar weakened, spurred by speculation over how substantial the anticipated interest rate cut might be next month.

“Domestically, the benchmark index remains in consolidation mode as global caution leaves investors hesitant to make significant moves,” he said.

At the close, the FBM KLCI dropped 5.92 points or 0.36% to 1,635.74 from yesterday’s close of 1,641.66.

The benchmark index opened 1.67 points higher at 1,643.33 and moved between 1,633.31 and 1,644.44 throughout the trading session.

On the broader market, losers outpaced gainers 888 to 255, with 427 counters unchanged, 938 untraded, and eight others suspended.

Turnover slipped to 3.53 billion units valued at RM2.8 billion from 3.72 billion units worth RM3.08 billion on Thursday.

Among the heavyweights, IHH Healthcare rose one sen to RM6.33, Tenaga Nasional declined 14 sen to RM13.72, Public Bank fell six sen to RM4.53, while Maybank and CIMB Group were unchanged at RM10.44 and RM7.89 respectively.

Among the actives, ACE Market debutant EPB Group rose six sen to 62 sen, Elridge Energy edged up 0.5 sen to 40.5 sen, Cape EMS declined two sen to 38 sen and MyEG Services fell five sen to 89 sen.

Meanwhile, Bursa has suspended the intraday short-selling (IDSS) for Genetec Technology and Notion VTEC for the rest of the day due to breaches of the price limit.

At the closing, Genetec’s share price tumbled 16.19% to RM1.19 while Notion VTEC’s shares plunged 16.78% to RM1.14.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index decreased 92.43 points to 12,333.81, the FBMT 100 Index fell 78.87 points to 12,013.44, the FBM Emas Shariah Index dropped 113.38 points to 12,262.05, the FBM 70 Index fell 247.68 points to 17,714.43, and the FBM ACE Index lost 58.45 points to 5,215.69.

Sector-wise, the energy index increased 0.88 of-a-point to 921.53 and the plantation index rose 0.92 of-a-point to 7,200.17, while the financial services index declined 86.67 points to 19,020.65, and the industrial products and services index slipped 1.78 points to 181.6.

The Main Market volume improved to 1.93 billion units worth RM2.46 billion from 1.85 billion units valued at RM2.69 billion yesterday.

Warrants turnover narrowed to 938.77 million units valued at RM99.32 million from 1.1 billion units worth RM129.7 million previously.

The ACE Market volume dropped to 660.1 million shares worth RM238.33 million from 768.36 million shares valued at RM260.94 million yesterday.

Consumer products and services counters accounted for 257.99 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (354.68 million), construction (148.94 million), technology (440.28 million), SPAC (nil ), financial services (93.35 million), property (240.88 million), plantation (19.52 million), REITs (10.06 million), closed/fund (54,000), energy (172.06 million), healthcare (75.78 million), telecommunications and media (23.59 million), transportation and logistics (44 million), utilities (54.06 million), and business trusts (217,600).