However, the recent announcement on the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) and the US’s tariff reduction could bolster market optimism in the near-term.
UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd’s head of investment research Sedek Jantan said the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) is still in a consolidation phase following strong upward momentum, as investors are still adjusting to evolving global macroeconomic signals.
“Utilities and banking counters came under pressure, contributing to the index’s modest pullback.
“We interpret this rotation as reflective of selective repositioning rather than broad-based risk aversion,” he told Bernama.
Looking ahead, Sedek maintains a constructive outlook, underpinned by optimism surrounding the recently unveiled 13MP, which lays the groundwork for long-term structural reforms.
“Additionally, the reduction in US trade tariffs has eased near-term geopolitical uncertainty and supported a more stable macro backdrop for Malaysian equities.
“We also expect the market to increasingly price in the prospect of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut at the upcoming federal open market committee meeting,” he added.
At 5pm, the FBM KLCI fell 6.37 points or 0.42% to close at 1,526.98 from last Friday’s close of 1,533.35.
The benchmark index, which opened 3.07 points lower at 1,530.28, moved between 1,522.96 and 1,530.28 throughout the trading session.
The broader market was negative, with decliners outpacing gainers 584 to 390, while 479 counters were unchanged, 1,037 untraded and 11 suspended.
Turnover declined to 2.63 billion units worth RM1.94 billion from 3.16 billion units worth RM2.23 billion last Friday.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank lost 6 sen to RM9.54, Public Bank fell 5 sen to RM4.24, Tenaga Nasional slid 14 sen to RM13.16, CIMB dipped 4 sen to RM6.75, while IHH Healthcare went up 2 sen to RM6.70.
Of the most active counters, Trive Property inched up 0.5 sen to 1.5 sen, while Inari Amertron shed 14 sen to RM1.99, Magma went down 3 sen to 38.5 sen, Zetrix AI shaved 2.5 sen to 87 sen, and Tanco erased 2 sen to 82 sen.
Top gainers included Nestle, which advanced RM1.18 to RM88.98, Fraser & Neave gained 38 sen to RM29, Petronas Gas rose 24 sen to RM18.12, and Ralco Corp soared 14.5 sen to RM1.11.
As for the top losers, Malaysian Pacific Industries slumped 46 sen to RM19.88, Hong Leong Bank slipped 24 sen to RM18.90, and Petronas Dagangan trimmed 20 sen to RM21.42.
Across the broader market, the FBM Emas Index sank 52.51 points to 11,472.82, the FBMT 100 Index decreased 52.03 points to 11,233.60, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index slipped 47.55 points to 11,493.21.
The FBM 70 Index tumbled 99.61 points to 16,614.26 while the FBM ACE Index edged up 5.00 points to 4,629.37.
By sector, the financial services index shrank 115.64 points to 17,364.56, the industrial products and services index was 1.12 points lower at 158.02, the plantation index shed 0.52 of-a-point to 7,370.45, and the energy index eased 9.81 points to 739.79.
The Main Market volume declined to 1.51 billion units valued at RM1.73 billion from 1.97 billion units valued at RM1.98 billion last Friday.
Warrants turnover fell to 824.19 million units worth RM117.88 million from 895.32 million units worth RM143.46 million previously.
However, the ACE Market volume improved to 290.27 million units worth RM97.82 million from 289.60 million units worth RM108.93 million on Friday.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 192.04 million shares traded on the Main Market; industrial products and services (195.89 million), construction (154.55 million), technology (245.39 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (51.55 million), property (201.98 million), plantation (22.81 million), REITs (32.68 million), closed-end fund (2,700), energy (198.14 million), healthcare (119.63 million), telecommunications and media (32.24 million), transportation and logistics (32.54 million), utilities (34.92 million), and business trusts (144,300).