The tensions, coupled with global uncertainty, have sparked investors’ concern, prompting them to remain cautious.
CIMB gave up 11 sen to RM6.75, Hong Leong Bank slid 44 sen to RM19.54, and Press Metal Aluminium erased 10 sen to RM4.70.
These counters dragged the composite index down by a combined 5.04 points.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said market sentiment remains cautious globally after Trump lashed out at Powell, raising fears about political interference in monetary policy and dampening optimism over the US economy.
“Back home, we see today’s profit-taking mainly on banks, construction and energy sectors’ heavyweights as an opportunity for bargain hunters given the cheaper valuations of the benchmark index.
“We foresee the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) continuing to test the psychological barrier of 1,500 this week, anticipating it to trend within 1,470-1,500,” he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Sedek Jantan said the lower FBM KLCI close today reflected mounting global uncertainty amid renewed trade tensions under the new US administration.
“Investor sentiment remains subdued, weighed down by three interrelated concerns: the unclear trajectory of US trade policy, perceived threats to the Fed’s independence, and downward revisions to first-quarter 2025 corporate earnings,” he said.
He said that over the weekend, risk appetite deteriorated further after Trump intensified his public criticism of Fed chair Powell, calling for immediate interest rate cuts.
“Reflecting these concerns, all banking stocks within the FBM KLCI ended in negative territory today as investors feared that any politically driven move against Powell could destabilise US monetary policy.
“This could send shockwaves through global markets, posing heightened risks to financial systems in emerging economies, which tend to be more vulnerable to external shocks,” he added.
At 5pm, the FBM KLCI fell 13.22 points or 0.88% to 1,486.25 from yesterday’s close of 1,499.47.
The benchmark index opened 7.03 points lower at 1,492.44 and moved between 1,482.70 and 1,492.44 during the early session.
Market breadth was negative, with decliners outpacing gainers 631 to 302, while 397 counters were unchanged, 1,095 untraded and 30 suspended.
Turnover advanced to 3.43 billion units valued at RM1.66 billion against yesterday’s 1.53 billion units valued at RM1.19 billion.
Among other heavyweights, YTL Power International slipped 9 sen to RM3.17, YTL Corporation lost 6 sen to RM1.77, Public Bank edged down 3 sen to RM4.37, while Maxis gained 5 sen to RM3.54 and Axiata added 1 sen to RM1.96.
As for the actives, NexG rose 1 sen to 35.5 sen, Aumas inched up 2 sen to 80 sen, while Ingenieur Gudang trimmed 0.5 sen to 3.5 sen, Tanco shaved 3.5 sen to 84.5 sen and MyEG Services was 2 sen lower at 89 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index decreased 96.37 points to 10,999.02, the FBMT 100 Index was down 98.75 points at 10,786.96, the FBM Emas Shariah Index tumbled 86.63 points to 10,798.44, the FBM 70 Index sank 151.85 points to 15,356.39, and the FBM ACE Index ticked down 5.10 points to 4,561.10.
Sector-wise, the financial services index dropped 159.20 points to 17,849.95, the industrial products and services index edged down 1.57 points to 142.46, and the energy index depreciated 5.58 points to 654.43.
However, the plantation index picked up 5.19 points to 7,216.32.
The Main Market volume increased to 1.25 billion units worth RM1.37 billion against yesterday’s 1.08 billion units worth RM1.09 billion.
Warrants turnover improved to 1.90 billion units valued at RM194.42 million from 155.08 million units valued at RM96.06 million previously.
The ACE Market volume narrowed to 274.01 million units worth RM97.09 million compared to 301.51 million units worth RM91.09 million yesterday.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 170.57 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (282.44 million), construction (111.39 million), technology (214.05 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (63.41 million), property (148.76 million), plantation (20.38 million), REITs (8.86 million), closed/fund (10,000), energy (87.09 million), healthcare (65.40 million), telecommunications and media (18.84 million), transportation and logistics (23.39 million), utilities (34.89 million), and business trusts (9,200).