Mild Upside Seen For Malaysia Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four trading days since the end of the three-day slide in which it had slumped more than 20 points or 1.1 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,710-point plateau although it figures to tick higher again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the largely oversold Asian markets is cautiously optimistic on hopes for an end to hostilities in the Middle East. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to move higher on Wednesday.

The KLCI finished barely lower on Tuesday as losses from the plantations and industrials were mitigated by mixed performances from the financials and telecoms.

For the day, the index eased 0.61 points or 0.04 percent to finish at 1,712.48 after trading between 1,703.83 and 1,715.02.

The lead from Wall Street is uncertain as the major averages opened mixed on Tuesday and trended slightly higher but still ended on opposite sides of the unchanged line.

The Dow rallied 537.24 points or 1.03 percent to finish at 52,747.32, while the NASDAQ slumped 55.17 points or 0.22 percent to close at 24,876.91 and the S&P 500 rose 15.60 points or 0.21 percent to end at 7,428.78.

The advance by the Dow was fueled by strong quarterly results from the likes of Sherwin-Williams (SHW) and Coca-Cola (KO), which roundly beat expectations and raised guidance.

Meanwhile, weakness among technology stocks weighed on the NASDAQ, with semiconductor and computer hardware stocks turning in some of the worst performances.

Outside of the tech sector, oil service stocks also saw significant weakness amid the extended nosedive by the price of crude oil.

Crude plunged again on Tuesday amid rising optimism over a resolution to the U.S.-Iran conflict, easing supply disruption concerns. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery shed $3.61 or 4.37 percent at $79.00 per barrel.