KUALA LUMPUR (April 5): Bursa Malaysia opened easier but rebounded thereafter today, tracking the better performance on Wall Street last week, on positive sentiment brought about by strong manufacturing data around the world and a drop in bond yields.

At 9.08am, the benchmark FBM KLCI had gained 2.22 points to 1,585.35 from last Friday’s close at 1,582.64.

The index opened 0.46 point easier at 1,586.51.

On the broader market, gainers led losers 349 to 150, while 345 counters were unchanged, 1,287 untraded and eight others suspended.

Total volume stood at 492.45 million shares worth RM180.01 million.

Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd expects the local bourse to remain on a cautious tone today after the KLCI finished the week on a softer note following a sharp selldown last Wednesday.

“However, we opined that investors are likely to remain optimistic on technology stocks, given the positive close last week on Wall Street.

“As some of the global markets are still off for public holiday, we expect trading activities may tone down for the day and the KLCI should hover below the 1,600 psychological level for the time being,” it said.

For sectors in focus, the research house said technology stocks are likely to be under the limelight today, while laggard counters in the property and construction sectors may gain traction as they are perceived to be recovering with the broader market, it added.

Of the heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) gained three sen to RM8.28, Petronas Chemical Group Bhd (PetChem) rose seven sen to RM8.07 and IHH Healthcare Bhd was two sen higher at RM5.31.

Public Bank Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) were flat at RM4.24 and RM10.26 respectively.

Among the active counters, Parkson Holdings Bhd and Barakah Offshore Petroleum Bhd added one sen each at 26 sen and 13 sen respectively, while Fintec Global Bhd, Nexgram Holdings Bhd and Berjaya Corp Bhd (BCorp) improved half a sen each to six sen, 5.5 sen and 45.5 sen respectively.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was up 28.26 points at 11,771.36, the FBM 70 rose 73.29 points to 15,802.61, the FBMT 100 increased 25.78 points to 11,419.14, the FBM Emas Shariah advanced 43.53 points to 13,049.38 and the FBM ACE surged 75.79 points to 9,864.91.

Sector-wise, the Plantation Index went up 3.1 points to 7,048.64, and the Industrial Products and Services Index edged up 0.57 of a point to 194.59, while the Financial Services Index eased 0.3 of a point to 15,276.26.