KUALA LUMPUR (April 27) : The FBM KLCI stayed in the red till lunch break on Friday as the local market takes the cue from domestic concerns ahead of the coming general election. Crucial highlights include the much-anticipated Bersih 3.0 rally on Saturday.
The less-optimistic sentiment across the local bourse was despite a stronger overnight close across US markets as global investors responded positively to improving US real estate and corporate earnings updates.
At 12.30pm, the FBM KLCI fell 8.01 points to 1,571.68.Across the exchange, some 759 million shares worth RM543 million were traded, leading to 216 gainers versus 356 decliners.
Top gainers NCB Holdings Bhd was up 46 sen to RM4.36 while Country View Bhd added 19 sen to 85 sen.
Among decliners, Sam Engineering & Equipment Bhd fell 37 sen to RM3 while United Plantations Bhd was down 24 sen to RM25.70.
Most active was Ariantec Global Bhd which gained 1.5 sen to 25 sen with some 267 million shares done.
Across Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.12% to 9,573.64, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.05% to 4,373.2, while South Korea’s Kospi was up 0.48% to 1,973.55.