KUALA LUMPUR (April 12): Bursa Malaysia was lower in the early trade on Wednesday (April 12), as cautious sentiments abounded in the market ahead of the United States (US) inflation data which will be released at night.

At 9.10am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) slipped by 3.53 points to 1,432.36, from Tuesday's close of 1,435.89.

The main index opened 1.13 points higher at 1,437.02.

However, the market breadth was positive as gainers edged past decliners at 162 versus 159, while 230 counters were unchanged, 1,712 untraded and 23 others suspended.

Turnover stood at 308.61 million units worth RM98.85 million.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said investors will be looking for fresh leads from the United States (US) Consumer Price Index data, which may reflect the US rates.

“Hence, we expect the FBM KLCI to hover within the 1,430-1,440 range today.

“We believe the accumulation of banking stocks would persist and anticipate hard tech-related counters to face some headwinds in view of the slowing global demand,” he told Bernama.

Among heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) and Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd (PetChem) declined by three sen to RM8.68 and RM7.33, respectively, Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) slipped four sen to RM9.09 and Public Bank Bhd was flat at RM3.99, while CIMB Group Holdings Bhd ticked up two sen to RM5.24.

As for the actives, Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd inched up half-a-sen to 13 sen, Revenue Group Bhd added 5.5 sen to 32.5 sen and Classita Holdings Bhd perked one sen to 18.5 sen, while Ta Win Holdings Bhd decreased half-a-sen to 5.5 sen and Jade Marvel Group Bhd eased one sen to 30 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index dwindled 17.59 points to 10,537.20, the FBMT 100 Index trimmed 18.03 points to 10,217.45, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index fell 24.64 points to 10,887.28, while the FBM ACE Index was 7.27 points higher at 5,353.60, and the FBM 70 index climbed 5.21 points to 13,790.97.

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index dropped 7.01 points to 15,776.66, the Industrial Products and Services Index shrank 0.70 of-a-point to 174.58, while the Energy Index grew 3.95 points to 876.77 and the Plantation Index increased 2.05 points to 6,842.58.