KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 27): Bursa Malaysia opened marginally higher on Monday (Dec 27), supported by buying interest, given fading Omicron Covid-19 variant fears, a dealer said.

At 9.08am, the benchmark FBM KLCI had earned 0.67 of a point to 1,517.12 from 1,516.45 last Friday.

The index opened 0.92 of a point higher at 1,517.37.

On the broader market, gainers led losers 105 to 86, while 205 counters were unchanged, 1,914 untraded and 14 others suspended.

Turnover stood at 76.04 million units valued at RM31.29 million.

Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd, in a research note, said buying support is expected to continue for at least a week as fears of the Omicron variant subside and investors are expected to pick up recovery-themed counters within the aviation, gaming and tourism industries.

“We think traders should focus on recovery-themed stocks, as well as companies with solid earning visibility, such as the technology sector.  Also, the thematic theme may surround furniture and timber-related stocks on the back of the recent flood situation,” it added.

The firm said the benchmark index ended the week flat amid softer trading activities, in line with mixed performances across regional markets.

“The lower liners and broader market, however, trended higher, led by the energy sector on the back of firmer crude oil prices,” it said.

Among the heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) slipped three sen to RM8.22, while Public Bank Bhd, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd (PetChem), IHH Healthcare Bhd, and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd were all flat at RM4.12, RM8.77, RM6.57 and RM5.36 respectively.

Of the actives, Malaysian Genomics Resource Centre Bhd added seven sen to RM1.13, while Focus Dynamics Group Bhd's warrant, Kejuruteraan Asastera Bhd and SMTrack Bhd were unchanged at one sen, 26 sen and 13.5 sen respectively, and Eduspec Holdings Bhd lost half a sen to 1.5 sen.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 6.17 points higher at 11,001.68, the FBMT 100 Index went up 5.13 points to 10,706.84 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased 11.72 points to 11,814.40.

The FBM 70 rose 8.43 points to 14,011.84 and the FBM ACE gained 10.45 points to 6,250.57.

Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index inched up 0.14 of a point to 197.68, while the Plantation Index rose 0.79 of a point to 6,489.30. The Financial Services Index, meanwhile, fell 1.73 points to 15,420.89.