KUALA LUMPUR (July 12): The FBM KLCI bucked the regional trend to close lower today as investor sentiment was dented by political uncertainty and the likelihood of the Government lowering its 2021 economic growth projection.

The FBM KLCI closed down 7.69 points or 0.51% at 1,512.89 after lingering in the negative territory for most of the day's session.

Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong said the heated domestic political landscape has led to some investors pulling out from the market.

The expected cut in the country’s economic growth projection also further weighed on market sentiment, he told theedgemarkets.com

Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz has said that the growth forecast for the year could be cut to about 4% from the current 6% to 7.5%.

Across Bursa Malaysia, 4.28 billion shares worth RM2.28 billion were traded. Losers led gainers by 742 to 246, while 395 counters closed unchanged.

Index-linked Top Glove Corp Bhd and Hartalega Holdings Bhd continued to remain under pressure today. Top Glove closed down 11 sen or 2.88% at RM3.71, while Hartalega slipped 25 sen or 3.52% to RM6.86.

Top losers included Kumpulan H&L High Tech Bhd,Widetech (M) Bhd, Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd, Transocean Holdings Bhd, Nestle (M) Bhd, Kobay Technology Bhd, Heineken (M) Bhd, Hartalega, Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd and Genetec Technology Bhd.

Notable gainers by value were UMS Holdings Bhd, Carlsberg Brewery (M) Bhd, BP Plastics Holdings Bhd, C.I. Holdings Bhd, LBI Capital Bhd, Advanced Packaging Technology (M) Bhd, SKB Shutters Corp Bhd, Batu Kawan Bhd, YNH Property Bhd and Keck Seng (M) Bhd.

Top active counters included Managepay Systems Bhd, YBS International Bhd, Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd, Fintec Global Bhd, Asdion Bhd, Lambo Group Bhd, Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd, NCT Alliance Bhd (formerly known as Grand-Flo Bhd) and  Metronic Global Bhd.

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 jumped 2.25%, while Seoul's Kospi rose 0.89%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.62% while the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index closed up 0.67% .

Reuters reported that Asian shares enjoyed a relief rally today as record highs on Wall Street and policy easing in China helped calm some of the recent jitters on global growth, though plenty of potential pitfalls lay ahead this week.