Market close KLCI rises 0.36%, Bursa volume hits record 7.67b shares

by **Cals** Wed 20 Aug 2014, 22:29

Market close KLCI rises 0.36%, Bursa volume hits record 7.67b shares

Business & Markets 2014

Written by Jonathan Gan of theedgemalaysia.com

Wednesday, 20 August 2014 17:38

KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 20): The FBM KLCI rose 0.36% to finish at its intraday high as investors' focus on small and mid-cap stocks drove Bursa Malaysia's trading volume to a record 7.67 billion shares.

At 5pm, the KLCI rose 6.73 points to 1,878.89 led by heavyweights like Petronas Gas Bhd and Petronas Dagangan Bhd. There were 758 decliners versus 227 gainers while 245 counters were unchanged.

Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd was the top gainer while Genting Plantations Bhd led the decliners list.

A staggering 7.6 billion shares with a total value of RM3.3 billion were traded.

The most active stocks include Globaltec Formation Bhd, and Sumatec Resources Bhd.

Danny Wong, CEO of Areca Capital, expressed concern over the KLCI’s market movements today, saying: “The huge volume today indicated high penny stock trades and perhaps the market is running out of ideas, so people are concentrating on penny stocks,” he told theedgemalaysia.com.

He advised investors to “be careful” and to pick fundamentally strong companies instead.

Choo Swee Kee, Chief Investment Officer of TA Investment Management Bhd said investors in small caps ought to be more vigilant.

“The market is volatile due to short term trading activities, and there’s a lot of interest in small & mid-cap stocks,” Choo said.

Regionally, Asian markets were positive with the Japanese Nikkei rising 0.03% and the South Korean Kospi edging up 0.08%.

Reuters reported that Asian stocks were steady on Wednesday after strong U.S. housing data lifted Wall Street shares, helping nudge Treasury yields higher and extending gains by the dollar against the euro and yen.

Investors are expected to scrutinise the US Federal Reserve’s minutes on when policymakers will raise interest rates at the policy meeting that will be held later this Friday.