KLCI sustains gains, AirAsia in focus

by **hlk** Wed 14 Mar 2012, 13:12

KUALA LUMPUR: The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KL Composite Index (KLCI) added 9.45 points to 1,573.47 at its midday break today sustaining the gains made so far in the morning session.
The local market was buoyed by the positive trading sentiment across Asia after Dow Jones Industrial Average surged overnight by 1.7% to 13,177.68 points.
Market movers on the KLCI were CIMB Group Bhd which gained 11 sen to RM7.37, Axiata Group Bhd which added 5 sen to RM5.11, Malayan Banking Bhd which moved up 5 sen to RM8.74 and AirAsia Bhd adding 9 sen to RM3.63.
Talk is on that the government will soon scrap the share swap deal by AA and Malaysia Airlines which will encourage more healthy participation in the industry by the two airline companies to the benefit of all market participants including AirAsia, a market dealer said.
Laggards meanwhile were IOI Corporation Bhd which lost 5 sen to RM5.29, DiGi.com Bhd unchanged at RM4.00 and Hong Leong Bank Bhd declining 2 sen to RM12.08 at midday.
The day was quiet on the corporate scene so far with the exeption ofDRB-Hicom Bhd's shareholders approving the purchase of Khazanah Nasional Bhd's 42.74% stake in Proton Holdings Bhd.
The Ringgit weakened against the US Dollar, it was trading at RM3.04 per US Dollar; while it hovered near its historical lows against the Euro currency at RM3.97 per Euro.
Across Asia meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei 225 surged 1.82% to break above the 10,000 psychological mark at 10,079.02, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged 1.28% to 21,613.40, China's Shanghai Composite Index added 0.74% to 2,474.07 and Singapore's Straits Times Index gaining 1.16% to 3,023.79.