KUALA LUMPUR (March 19): Bursa Malaysia opened on a mixed note on Tuesday, as cautious sentiments prevailed, despite the ongoing accumulation of blue chips, said an analyst.

At 9.15 am, the FBM KLCI had fallen 4.39 points to 1,549.25, from Monday’s close at 1,553.64.

The benchmark index opened 2.05 points easier at 1,551.59.

However, on the broader market, gainers led decliners 222 to 202, while 326 counters were unchanged, 1,544 untraded, and nine suspended. 

Turnover amounted to 442.98 million units worth RM189.57 million. 

Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng believes that the buying momentum on Monday was predominantly driven by local institutions, as more funds were flowing back into the domestic market. 

"Thus, we expect the index to hover within the 1,550-1,560 range today (Tuesday)," he told Bernama. 

Meanwhile, Wall Street closed higher on Monday amid cautious mode, as many are expecting another stagnant rate outlook ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 76 points, while the Nasdaq benefited from rotational play and jumped 130 points, despite the US 10-year yield edging higher to 4.328%.

Back home on Tuesday, Bursa heavyweights Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) at RM9.71 a share, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd at RM6.61, and Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd at RM6.82 had declined by four sen each. 

Public Bank Bhd inched down two sen to RM4.27, and Tenaga Nasional Bhd lost six sen to RM11.54. 

As for the actives, Vsolar Group Bhd added 1.5 sen to 13 sen, MMAG Holdings Bhd gained one sen to 15 sen, and Ta Win Holdings Bhd eased half a sen to three sen, while Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd at one sen and Harvest Miracle Capital Bhd at 12.5 sen were both flat.

On the index board, the FBM Emas Index was 21.87 points easier at 11,535.50, the FBMT 100 Index reduced by 23.31  points to 11,195.54, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased by 19.14 points to 11,544.87. 

Meanwhile, the FBM ACE Index gained 28.77 points to 4,745.89, and the FBM 70 Index advanced 2.31 points to 15,717.76. 

Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index dropped 64.90 points to 17,274.15, the Industrial Products and Services Index edged down 0.35 point to 176.89, and the Plantation Index slipped 10.06 points to 7,275.38, while the Energy Index improved by 4.04 points to 932.45.