KLCI kicks off year's final trading week on tepid note

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 27): The FBM KLCI started the final trading week of
the year on a weaker note and fell 4.61 points to 1,491.54 at
mid-morning, weighed by select blue chips.

Losers led gainers by
179 to 174, while 194 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 176.78
million shares valued at RM66.23 million.

Asian shares were
steady on Tuesday in thin volume as investors took to the sidelines
before U.S. markets reopen later in the day from a long weekend and data
which could offer clues over growth prospects in the world's largest
economy, according to Reuters.

European and some Asian markets, including Hong Kong and Australia, were closed on Tuesday, it said.

At the regional markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.52% to 8,435.63, the
Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.06% to 2,188.82, Taiwan's Taiex lost
0.52% to 7,055.82, South Korea's Kospi fell 0.74% to 1,843.03 and
Singapore's Straits Times was down 0.26% to 1,492.21.

BIMB
Securities Research in a note Dec 27 said the Eurozone enjoyed a
temporary reprieve as traders and investors alike were in holiday mood
ahead of Christmas and 2012, adding that global equities continued with
their uptick as European bourses have all registered positive gains.

Buoyed by improved US economic outlook and absence of nasty news, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 124 points to close at almost
12,300, it said.

However, the research house said that
surprisingly, the feel good factor did not entirely cascade down to
Asian bourses as the region markets ended rather mixed.

'As for Malaysia, the FBMKLCI continued with its uptrend and is within touching distant of the 1,500 mark.

'We reckon trading would be lacklustre over the next few days and will
be interesting to see if the benchmark index is able to break the
psychological 1,500 looking forward. We are sticking our necks out that
it will,' it said.

On Bursa Malaysia, BAT was the top loser at
mid-morning and was down 20 sen to RM49; PPB fell 18 sen to RM16.80,
Genting PLANTATION []s down 16 sen to RM8.25, JT International 13 sen to
RM6.86, Petra Energy and Hong Leong Bank fell eight sen each to RM1.05
and RM10.86, Harvest Court seven sen to RM1.06 while Daibochi and
Shangri-La fell six sen each to RM2.58 and RM2.38.

Gainers
included Nestle, HLFG, AIC, TDM, F&N. GAB, United Plantations,
Kretam and Boustead, while the actives included Proton, Vastalux, Marco,
Envair and Utopia.