Malaysia Stock Market May Extend Wednesday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market on Wednesday ended the four-day winning streak in which it had jumped more than 35 points of 2.3 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,640-point plateau and it may take further damage on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on continuing concerns over the viability of the technology companies. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KLCI finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the financial shares and telecoms and a mixed picture from the plantations.

For the day, the index slipped 6.87 points or 0.42 percent to finish at 1,641.44 after trading between 1,639.13 and 1,646.66. Among the actives, AMMB Holdings gained 0.65 percent, while Axiata stumbled 1.15 percent, Celcomdigi plunged 1.51 percent, CIMB Group skidded 0.75 percent, Gamuda rallied 2.10 percent, IHH Healthcare tanked 1.49 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong plummeted 2.22 percent, Maxis fell 0.26 percent, Maybank and Press Metal both shed 0.58 percent, MISC tumbled 1.05 percent, Nestle Malaysia added 0.71 percent, PPB Group and YTL Power both sank 0.59 percent, Public Bank surrendered 1.34 percent, QL Resources was up 0.25 percent, RHB Bank dropped 0.65 percent, Sime Darby lost 0.50 percent, SD Guthrie rose 0.55 percent, Sunway perked 0.18 percent, Telekom Malaysia retreated 1.00 percent, Tenaga Nasional advanced 0.76 percent, YTL Corporation slumped 0.94 percent and Petronas Chemicals, Petronas Dagangan, Petronas Gas, 99 Speed Mart Retail, IOI Corporation and MRDIY were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened mixed but quickly headed south and spent the balance of the day under water.

The Dow dropped 228.29 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 47,885.97, while the NASDAQ plunged 418.14 points or 1.81 percent to close at 22,693.32 and the S&P 500 sank 78.83 points or 1.16 percent to end at 6,721.43.

The sharp pullback seen as the day progressed came amid renewed weakness among technology stocks, as reflected by the steep drop by the tech-heavy NASDAQ.

Semiconductor stocks turned in some of the market's worst performances on the day, resulting in a 3.8 percent plunge by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. Computer hardware stocks and networking stocks also slumped.

On the other hand, energy stocks turned in a strong performance as the price of crude oil rebounds from its lowest levels since early 2021.

The rebound by the price of crude oil comes after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers in Venezuela. West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery was up $0.70 or 1.3 percent to end at $55.97 per barrel.