Win Streak May Continue For Malaysia Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has finished higher in four straight sessions, collecting more than 30 points or 2 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just above the 1,630-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat following a clear result in the U.S. presidential election. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The KLCI finished modestly higher on Wednesday following mixed performances from the industrials, financials, plantations and telecoms.

For the day, the index advanced 13.47 points or 0.83 percent to finish at the daily high of 1,634.17 after moving as low as 1,623.52.

Among the actives, Axiata stumbled 1.69 percent, while CIMB Group climbed 0.99 percent, Genting increased 0.75 percent, Genting Malaysia improved 0.88 percent, IHH Healthcare dropped 0.68 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong lost 0.36 percent, Maxis plunged 3.22 percent, Maybank collected 0.57 percent, MISC jumped 1.83 percent, MRDIY gained 0.45 percent, Nestle Malaysia was up 0.10 percent, Petronas Chemicals sank 0.60 percent, PPB Group added 0.55 percent, Press Metal spiked 3.86 percent, Public Bank strengthened 1.35 percent, QL Resources fell 0.21 percent, RHB Bank dipped 0.16 percent, Sime Darby shed 0.42 percent, SD Guthrie slumped 0.99 percent, Sunway accelerated 3.84 percent, Telekom Malaysia rose 0.15 percent, Tenaga Nasional rallied 2.13 percent, YTL Corporation surged 5.71 percent, YTL Power soared 3.98 percent and Celcomdigi, IOI Corporation and Hong Leong Bank were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher and only accelerated as the day progressed, ending at session highs.

The Dow surged 1,508.05 points or 3.57 percent to finish at 43,729.93, while the NASDAQ rallied 544.29 points or 2.95 percent to close at 18,983.46 and the S&P 500 spiked 146.28 points or 2.53 percent to end at 5,929.04.

The extended rally on Wall Street came after former President Trump was declared the winner in the presidential election versus Vice President Kamala Harris.

The decisive victory helped avoid the uncertainty that would be created by a prolonged vote counting process and potential legal challenges.

Traders will turn their attention to the Federal Reserve, which is due to announce its latest monetary policy decision later today. The Fed is widely expected to lower interest rates by 25 basis points, but the accompanying statement could the impact the outlook for future rate cuts.

Oil prices drifted lower on Wednesday after data showed crude inventories in the U.S. rose more than expected last week, while a stronger dollar also weighed. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December closed down $0.30 or 0.42 percent at $71.69 a barrel.