KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia is expected to trade range-bound with an upside bias next week as investors are believed to be ready to buy the breakout stocks to add to their positions or use leveraged tools to maximise profits, a dealer said.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) has shown four days of white candles, indicating momentum that could push the index towards the next resistance at 1,610.
"A clear break above this level may lead to further gains, while immediate support is at 1,582," he told Bernama.
Hence, he anticipates the index to trade within the 1,590-1,610 range over the next week.
After a tumultuous week, Thong said global funds may look at more reasonably valued markets such as Hong Kong and Malaysia.
The enhancement of China's business environment is drawing more multinationals, as indicated by the growing number of multinational corporations intending to increase their presence in the world's second-largest economy, he added.
"Meanwhile, China's Premier Li Qiang's recent visit to Malaysia aims to enhance cooperation between the two nations in multiple areas, ensuring mutual benefits and shared success," he said.
On the week just ended, the market experienced a rollercoaster ride as the bloodbath across regional stock markets dragged Bursa Malaysia lower on Monday, sparked by a disappointing July jobs report from the United States (US).
This heavily impacted Japan's Nikkei 225 Index, which saw a steep fall of 4,451.28 points or 12.40 per cent, exceeding the drop recorded in 1987.
The catalyst for this decline was growing concern over a potential US recession following a disappointing July jobs report, wherein the unemployment rate rose to 4.3 per cent, the highest since October 2021.
Meanwhile, the US nonfarm payrolls grew by only 114,000 last month, below the downwardly revised 179,000 in June and the Dow Jones estimate of 185,000 jobs.
Amid the global stock-market rout, the short selling of a total of 19 companies on the exchange under the Intraday Short Selling (IDSS) was suspended for the rest of the day on Monday as the Last Done Price of the Approved Securities dropped more than 15 per cent/15 Sen from the Reference Price.
The companies included SP Setia, Mah Sing and Sime Darby Property.
However, Bursa Malaysia staged a swift comeback on Tuesday, driven by bargain hunting, as the fundamentals of the Malaysian economy remain solid.
On a Friday-to-Friday basis, the FBM KLCI eased 15.0 points to 1,596.05 from last week's 1,611.05.
On Bursa Malaysia's index board, the FBM Emas Index dropped by 128.33 points to 12,175.17, the FBMT 100 Index dipped 112.36 points to 11,807.59, the FBM Emas Shariah Index declined 119.66 points to 12,328.49, the FBM 70 Index fell 173.81 points to 17,728.99, and the FBM ACE Index sank 92.75 points to 5,377.66.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index decreased 177.76 points to 18,053.83, the Industrial Products and Services Index slid 4.21 points to 181.29, the Energy Index slipped 7.51 points to 921.64, and the Plantation Index fell 69.69 points to 7,073.92.
For the week just ended, turnover rose to 29.29 billion units valued at RM23.34 billion versus 21.51 billion units valued at RM16.31 billion in the preceding week.
The Main Market volume expanded to 18.54 billion shares worth RM21.18 billion against 12.65 billion shares worth RM14.54 billion a week ago.
Warrants turnover widened to 6.61 billion units valued at RM826.77 million from 5.16 billion units valued at RM650.71 million last week.
The ACE Market volume swelled to 4.11 billion shares worth RM1.32 billion from 3.65 billion shares worth RM1.11 billion previously.
-- BERNAMA