KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI pulled back on Monday, tracking regional markets as concerns over tighter regulations in China.
At 5pm, the FBM KLCI was up 10.91 points to 1,512.53. The index had earlier risen to a high of 1,525.73.
Losers trounced gainers by 702 to 343, while 428 counters traded unchanged. Trading volume was brisk at 4.8 billion shares valued at RM2.79bil.
The KLCI-component stocks were overwhelmingly in the negative, with 27 losers and three gainers.
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added seven sen to RM4.90, Genting gained three sen to RM4.81 and Genting Malaysia climbed two sen to RM2.81.
Hartalega tumbled 31 sen to RM7.39, Nestle fell 30 sen to RM133, Hong Leong Bank shed 30 sen to RM18.10 and Hong Leong Financial Group lost 20 sen to RM17.54.
Maybank, Tenaga and Axiata fell three sen each to RM8, RM9.70 and RM3.84 respectively.
On the broader market, Genetec jumped 56 sen to RM18.72, Sam Engineering rose 30 sen to RM7.66 and KESM added 26 sen to RM12.36.
MPI, the top loser on Bursa Malaysia fell 50 sen to RM42. Carlsberg lost 46 sen to RM21.54 and Heineken eased 38 sen to RM22.
Meanwhile, oil prices fell over US$1 on concerns about fuel demand from the spread of Covid-19 variants, as well as floods in China.
Brent crude fell US$1.13, or 1.52%, to US$72.97 a barrel while US West Texas Intermediate crude was at US$70.83 per barrel, down US$1.24.
Reuters reported that Chinese shares fell sharply to their lowest levels this year today after China barred for-profit tutoring in core school subjects and restricted foreign investment in the sector.
Under the new rules, all institutions offering tutoring on the school curriculum will be registered as non-profit organisations, and no new licences will be granted, according to an official document.
China’s blue-chip CSI300 index fell 3.22% to end at its weakest close since December, the Shanghai Composite Index declined 2.34% at a more than two-month closing low, and the Shenzhen Composite fell 2.28%.
Elsewhere in the region, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 4.13% to 26,192.32, South Korea’s Kospi closed down 0.91% at 3,224.95 while Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended up 1.04% to 27,833.29.
