KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia extended its gains on Thursday as the FBM KLCI was lifted by Petronas-linked stocks, buoyed by firm crude oil prices, while plantations and glove makers rallied.
At 5pm, the KLCI was up 16.99 points or 1.18% to 1,452.11. Turnover was high at 7.15 billion shares valued at RM4.65bil. There were 558 gainers, 430 losers and 405 counters unchanged.
Bursa's firmer close bucked the key Asian markets. Reuters reported Japan's Nikkei stock index slid 0.2% after data there showed the country's exports collapsed 21.9% in April. Another dismal trade report came from South Korea where 20-day exports declined by 20.3% year-on-year and imports fell by 16.9%, though Korean stocks still ended the day higher.
Shares in China had ended down 0.2% after more sparring with Washington over the coronavirus and Hong Kong and Taiwan emerged. Friday's annual National People's Congress (NPC) meeting was also looming after a 2-1/2 month delay due to COVID-19.
At Bursa, glove makers were the among the top gainers with Kossan
up 93 sen to RM8.63, Top Glove 86 sen to RM11.66, Supermax 81 sen to RM5.40, Hartalega 58 sen to RM10. Comfort Gloves jumped 28 sen to RM2.76 but Careplus shed 0.5 sen to 94.5 sen.
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