KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 5): Bursa Malaysia opened on a mixed note on Friday, and will likely track regional market movements and Wall Street’s overnight mixed performance. 

At 9.08am on Friday, the FBM KLCI was up marginally by 0.62 point to 1,477.88, from Thursday’s close at 1,477.26.

The benchmark index opened 0.37 of a point lower at 1,476.89.

On the broader market, gainers beat losers 229 to 152, while 326 counters were unchanged, 1,513 untraded, and 17 others suspended.

Turnover stood at 405.90 million units worth RM117.61 million.

Recapping Thursday’s performance, Rakuten Trade equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the KLCI finally came to life from an influx of buyers on a broad-based basis.

“The index managed to break above the 1,465 mark to close in on the 1,480 level. The uptrend seems sustainable. 

“As such, we expect the benchmark index to trend in the 1,475-1,485 range today (Friday), as accumulation on the big caps continues,” Thong told Bernama.

Meanwhile, sentiment in the US was mixed, as investors remained cautious about interest rates and the stretched valuations of US equities.

Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index was flat, as expectations of lower interest rates from the US Federal Reserve dissipated. 

On the crude oil market, prices remained soft due to the building up of US inventory. As a result, Brent crude dipped to US$77 per barrel.

Among the heavyweights, YTL Corp Bhd rose four sen to RM2.09 a share, Tenaga Nasional Bhd shed 10 sen to RM10.32, QL Resources Bhd added six sen to RM5.78, YTL Power International Bhd increased three sen to RM3.03, IOI Corp Bhd eased three sen to RM3.97, and Mr DIY Group (M) Bhd was up one sen to RM1.45.

Of the actives, Luster Industries Bhd rose three sen to 9.5 sen, Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd and MQ Technology Bhd both grew half a sen to three sen, while Minetech Resources Bhd was flat at 21 sen.

On the index board, the FBM ACE Index expanded 11.98 points to 5,399.87, the FBM Emas Index increased 7.65 points to 11,011.79, and the FBMT 100 Index garnered 6.59 points to 10,661.76.

The FBM 70 Index improved 17.92 points to 14,893.83, but the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 4.39 points to 11,1163.30.

Sector-wise, the Property Index added 1.35 points to 916.72, the Energy Index gained 0.30 of a point to 834.79, and the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up 0.01 of a point to 177.11.

The Financial Services Index bagged 16.07 points to 16,481.27, but the Plantation Index eased by 14.23 points to 7,023.34.