FBM KLCI poised to end on weekly gain after volatile week

KUALA LUMPUR: The FBM KLCI slipped in morning trading, but remained set to close the week on a slight gain after a volatile week marked by geopolitical turmoil and tariff threats.

After the previous day's strong performance, traders shifted into profit-taking mode, although the index is expected to rise further in the coming week on improving risk appetite for equities.

The benchmark index was down 1.36 points to 1,715.78 at midday with a mixed performance among the blue chips. The market scoreboard was also split although it leaned slightly into the negative with 477 stocks in the red compared to 452 gainers.

Trading volume was 1.78 billion shares valued at RM1.47bil.

Among the sectors, financial services lagged the most as traders locked in some of the sizeable gains made over the last two weeks, although it remains not far off the historic high achieved on Monday.

Plantation plays were positive after having been left behind in the recent rally, while property stocks surged to a fresh one-year high as they continued an uptrend that began at the start of 2025. 

On the FBM KLCI, Hong Leong Bank dropped 22 sen to RM23.98, PETRONAS Dagangan shed 22 sen to RM20.98 and Nestle fell RM2 to RM115.

Leading actives on the wider bourse included Capital A up 2.5 sen to 54.5 sen, Tanco slipping two sen to RM1.29 and Velesto down one sen to 30.5 sen.

Regionally, markets were mostly positive ahead of the weekend. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.33% to 53,864 after the central bank mantained status quo on the interest rate, as was widely expected.

South Korea's Kospi gained 0.47% to 4,975. In China, the Shanghai Composite index gained 0.27% to 41,333 while the CSI 300 dipped 0.35% to 4,707. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.33% to 26,718.