Malaysia Stock Market May Snap Losing Streak On Tuesday

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has moved lower in three straight sessions, slipping more than 25 points or 1.6 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just beneath the 1,650-point plateau although it may find traction on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky thanks to a less clear outlook for interest rates. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were slightly higher and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

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

For the day, the index lost 11.18 points or 0.67 percent to finish at 1,648.91 after trading between 1,647.28 and 1,661.89.

Among the actives, Axiata tumbled 1.95 percent, while CIMB Group tanked 2.31 percent, Genting soared 2.67 percent, Genting Malaysia spiked 2,54 percent, IHH Healthcare sank 0.56 percent, IOI Corporation lost 0.27 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong perked 0.10 percent, Maxis rose 0.51 percent, Maybank fell 0.19 percent, MISC plummeted 3.58 percent, MRDIY climbed 0.95 percent, Petronas Chemicals slumped 0.88 percent, PPB Group plunged 3.47 percent, Press Metal improved 0.40 percent, Public Bank dropped 0.65 percent, QL Resources jumped 1.74 percent, RHB Bank rallied 1.31 percent, Sime Darby advanced 0.82 percent, SD Guthrie shed 0.42 percent, Sunway retreated 1.18 percent, Telekom Malaysia gained 0.60 percent, Tenaga Nasional tumbled 1.50 percent, YTL Corporation added 0.80 percent, YTL Power gathered 0.27 percent and Celcomdigi was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as the major averages opened flat on Monday and hugged the line throughout most of the session before a late rally nudged them into the green at the close.

The Dow added 17.15 points or 0.04 percent to finish at a record 42,330.15, while the NASDAQ gained 69.58 points or 0.38 percent to close at 18,189.17 and the S&P 500 rose 24.31 points or 0.42 percent to end at a record 5,762.48.

Stocks initially came under pressure in reaction to remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who suggested the central bank will continue to lower interest rates but stressed the downward path for rates is not on a preset course.

Powell's remarks partly offset optimism the Fed will continue to lower interest rates aggressively in the coming months.

The Fed's next monetary policy meeting is scheduled for November 6-7, with CME Group's FedWatch Tool currently indicating a 65.3 percent chance the central bank will lower rates by 25 basis points and a 34.7 percent chance of another 50-basis point rate cut.

Oil futures settled flat on Monday as uncertainty about the outlook for oil demand from China weighed on prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November ended down $0.01 at $68.17 a barrel.