Bursa Malaysia ends lower amid elevated US treasury yields, tech weakness

Bursa Malaysia experienced a decline in its performance on August 19, as elevated United States (US) Treasury yields and a weakening in technology stocks impacted investor sentiment, according to an analyst. Despite this overall downward trend, gains in healthcare and telecommunications stocks offered some support to the local market.

By 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) had decreased by 2.04 points, or 0.12 percent, to 1,731.32, marking a decline from yesterday's closing value of 1,733.36. The benchmark index had opened 1.39 points lower at 1,731.97 and fluctuated between 1,725.95 and 1,733.44 throughout the day. The broader market saw losers outnumber gainers by 701 to 478, while 563 counters remained unchanged, 1,131 remained untraded, and 16 were suspended.

Turnover decreased to 3.31 billion units valued at RM2.92 billion from 3.74 billion units valued at RM2.91 billion the previous day. Mohd Sedek Jantan, the director of investment strategy and country economist at IPPFA Sdn Bhd, attributed the technology sector's weakness to the rising US bond yields, which have reached their highest level since 2007, albeit temporarily.

Additionally, elevated crude oil prices, now above US$90 per barrel, have added to concerns about global inflation and expectations for interest rate changes. The combination of these factors may continue to pressure technology and other growth-oriented counters, although the market's relatively defensive composition may provide some resilience against broader global volatility.

Among the major companies listed, Maybank increased by two sen to RM10.64, Public Bank gained four sen to RM5.15, and IHH Healthcare rose 15 sen to RM8.30. Conversely, CIMB Group fell by four sen to RM7.91, and Tenaga Nasional dropped two sen to RM14.40. Among the most active stocks, Zetrix AI climbed two sen to 65.5 sen, JAKS Resources decreased by one sen to 12 sen, Pentech Holdings rose 2.5 sen to 31.5 sen, Nexgram Holdings remained flat at six sen, and AirAsia Group decreased seven sen to 91.5 sen. The top gainers for the day included Batu Kawan and Dutch Lady Milk Industries, both of which increased by 44 sen to RM21.00 and RM31.94, respectively.

Nestle rose by 30 sen to RM104.00, while Malayan Cement and Ayer Holdings both gained 25 sen, reaching RM6.60 and RM7.50, respectively. On the other hand, Malaysian Pacific Industries fell by RM1.92 to RM46.10, United Plantations decreased by 60 sen to RM32.00, Mi Technovation dropped by 20 sen to RM6.25, and both SD Guthrie and Johor Plantations shed 17 sen, reaching RM6.54 and RM1.88, respectively.

The FBM ACE Index rose by 1.54 points to 5,302.72, the FBM 70 Index decreased by 77.39 points to 18,134.27, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index fell by 31.61 points to 12,635.13. The FBM Top 100 Index lost 24.67 points to 12,619.87, and the FBM Emas Index declined by 24.96 points to 12,804.74. The Main Market volume was 1.74 billion units valued at RM2.57 billion, down from 2.01 billion units valued at RM2.53 billion the previous day.

Warrants turnover decreased to 961.33 billion units worth RM137.63 million, compared to 1.10 billion units worth RM151.69 million the previous day. The ACE Market volume was 607.41 million units valued at RM216.59 million, down from 631.13 million units valued at RM222.14 million the previous day. Among the trading counters, consumer products and services accounted for 235.43 million shares, industrial products and services made up 366.58 million shares, construction represented 143.27 million shares, technology contributed 442.38 million shares, financial services totaled 65.52 million shares, property held 122.44 million shares, plantation occupied 72.88 million shares, real estate investment trusts constituted 14.64 million shares, closed-end funds accounted for 172,100 shares, energy comprised 69.21 million shares, healthcare included 98.22 million shares, telecommunications and media contained 24.87 million shares, transportation and logistics had 50.78 million shares, utilities comprised 38.24 million shares, and business trusts made up 13,000 shares.