Market Close KLCI up 0.4% on bargain hunting, fundamentals seen intact

by **Cals** Thu 14 Aug 2014, 01:27

Market Close KLCI up 0.4% on bargain hunting, fundamentals seen intact

Business & Markets 2014

Written by Jeffrey Tan of theedgemalaysia.com

Wednesday, 13 August 2014 17:34

KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 13): The FBM KLCI ended 7.65 points or 0.4% higher at 1,858.04 points as investors bargain hunted for beaten-down stocks following the index's substantial decline last Friday.

Today, the KLCI's rise came on gains in stocks such as PPB Group Holdings Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd and Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd.

Areca Capital CEO Danny Wong told theedgemalaysia.com that market fundamentals remained intact despite the KLCI's tumble last week.

“Nothing has changed in terms of fundamentals,” he told theedgemalaysia.com over telephone today,

Last Friday, the KLCI fell 27.45 points or 1.47%.

Today, Wong said he expectes foreign funds to flow into local equities given the Malaysian stock market's regional laggard status and the favourable ringgit play.

Meanwhile, Hong Leong Investment Bank Research, in a note today, said the KLCI could still enjoy some relief rally in the next one to two days following last week’s sharp fall.

Hong Leong analyst Nick Foo Mun Pang, however, mentioned sustainability would be in question given Bursa Malaysia’s rich valuations against regional markets and on-going August reporting season.

“Besides, sentiment will be affected by the on-going geopolitical headlines from Ukraine, Gaza and Iraq, which could cap the recent relief rallies in global markets,” he said

Across Bursa Malaysia, a total of 3.6 billion shares worth RM2.7 billion were traded. Market gainers thumped decliners by 544 versus 313, while 305 counters were unchanged.

The top gainer was Petronas Gas while the leading decliner was Hong Leong Capital Bhd.

The most active counter was PDZ Holdings Bhd.

Across Asia, the Shanghai Composite ended 0.06% higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.81%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 0.35% while South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.81%.

Reuters reported that Asian shares eked out modest gains on Wednesday, as investors remained cautious after downbeat data from China and Japan, and as the crisis in Ukraine threatened a fragile economic recovery in Europe.

Mainland Chinese shares were knocked off their highs by surprisingly weak loans data, and other data released later in the session also missed expectations. Some economists believe further stimulus may be needed to sustain the recovery and offset the drag from the cooling property market.