Malaysia Shares Tipped To Bounce Higher On Tuesday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market on Monday snapped the two-day winning streak in which it had gathered almost 10 points or 0.6 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just beneath the 1,615-point plateau although it's looking to rebound on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is fairly flat with a touch of upside ahead of the FOMC statement on Wednesday. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to inch higher.

The KLCI finished slightly lower on Monday following losses from the plantation stocks and mixed performances from the financial shares and telecoms.

For the day, the index eased 3.49 points or 0.22 percent to finish at 1,614.37 after trading between 1,613.01 and 1,619.24.

Among the actives, Axiata improved 0.71 percent, while Celcomdigi advanced 0.79 percent, CIMB Group and Tenaga Nasional both lost 0.29 percent, Genting shed 0.43 percent, Genting Malaysia retreated 1.13 percent, IHH Healthcare rose 0.16 percent, IOI Corporation declined 1.03 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong tanked 1.42 percent, Maxis sank 0.55 percent, Maybank eased 0.10 percent, MRDIY rallied 2.12 percent, Petronas Chemicals climbed 1.05 percent, PPB Group slumped 0.94 percent, Press Metal plunged 2.38 percent, QL Resources and Telekom Malaysia both fell 0.16 percent, SD Guthrie dropped 0.69 percent, YTL Corporation tumbled 1.37 percent and YTL Power, RHB Capital, Sime Darby, Public Bank, MISC, AMMB Holdings and Hong Leong Bank were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as the major averages opened lower on Monday before gradually climbing up into positive territory.

The Dow gained 69.05 points or 0.18 percent to finish at 38,868.04, while the NASDAQ added 51.90 points or 0.35 percent to close at 17,192.53 and the S&P 500 rose 13/80 points or 0.26 percent to end at 5,360.79.

Traders seemed reluctant to make significant moves ahead of several key events later this week, including the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting.

The Fed is due to announce its latest monetary policy decision on Wednesday, when the central bank is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged.

Since the decision is largely seen as a foregone conclusion, traders are likely to pay closer attention to Fed officials' latest projections for the economy and rates.

Ahead of the Fed announcement, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its report on consumer price inflation in the month of May.

Crude oil prices rose sharply on Monday amid optimism about the outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July ended higher by $2.21 or about 2.9 percent at $77.74 a barrel.