KUALA LUMPUR (March 29): Bursa Malaysia remained in negative territory at midday on continued profit taking in most heavyweight counters.

At lunch break, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) fell 16.49 points, or 1.03%, to 1,581.46 from 1,597.95 at Monday’s close.

The FBM KLCI opened 0.02 of-a-point lower at 1,597.93 and moved between 1,579.27 and 1,598.21 throughout the morning session.

On the broader market, losers thumped gainers 432 to 175, while 585 counters were unchanged, 1,108 untraded and 35 others suspended.

Total turnover stood at 1.64 billion units worth RM1.03 billion.

Regional indices, however, performed mixed at midday. Singapore’s Straits Times fell 0.23% to 3,424 and China’s Shanghai Stock Exchange dropped 0.43% to 3,200.65, while Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.53% to 28,092.91, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.45% to 21,783.56 and South Korea’s Kospi added 0.27% to 2,737.02.

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd said in a note that the FBM KLCI might possibly trend in the 1,590-1,605 range on Tuesday amid some bargain-hunting activities as the country braced for the reopening of its international borders this Friday.

Meanwhile, Brent crude slid to US$112 (RM472.92) per barrel due to the latest lockdown in Shanghai.

Among the oil and gas-related counters, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd lost 19 sen to RM9.59, Petronas Dagangan Bhd dropped 52 sen to RM20.84, Petronas Gas Bhd lost four sen to RM16.76, and Dialog Group Bhd eased five sen to RM2.72.

Meanwhile, Malayan Banking Bhd fell seven sen to RM8.89, Public Bank Bhd slipped two sen to RM4.65, IHH Healthcare Bhd slid 17 sen to RM6.23, and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd declined three sen to RM5.30.

Of the actives, Sapura Energy Bhd and CSH Alliance Bhd rose half-a-sen each to four sen and 15 sen, respectively, while Top Builders Capital Bhd, DGB Asia Bhd and SMTrack Bhd fell half-a-sen each to two sen, two sen and eight sen, respectively.

On the index board, the FBM 70 declined by 104.19 points to 13,612.94, the FBM Emas Index was 107.01 points lower at 11,309.28, the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 128.96 points to 11,863.7, the FBMT 100 Index trimmed 107.48 points to 10,989.42, and the FBM ACE shed 3.68 points to 5,562.48.

Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 2.07 points to 202.77, the Financial Services Index contracted 107.66 points to 16,660.92, and the Plantation Index weakened 46.55 points to 7,970.62.