Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) ended higher, supported by improving sentiment as hopes rose for an easing of US-Iran tensions through renewed talks.
He said regional indices also trended higher, taking cues from Wall Street’s record close and China’s better-than-expected economic data, with the first quarter of 2026 gross domestic product growth at 5% year-on-year.
“We are positive on the recent developments in West Asia. But investors are advised to remain cautious as the situation remains fluid and subject to sudden changes.
“However, the sustainability of the rally will depend on clearer confirmation of a lasting de-escalation, and investors are expected to stay selective, with focus on fundamentally strong and resilient sectors, while avoiding aggressive positioning,” he told Bernama.
At 5pm, the FBM KLCI rose 6.29 points, or 0.37%, to 1,689.71 from Wednesday’s close of 1,683.42.
The benchmark index opened 1.44 points higher at 1,684.86 and moved between 1,682.81 and 1,690.83 throughout the day.
In the broader market, gainers outpaced losers 753 to 486, while 531 counters were unchanged, 961 untraded and 23 suspended.
Turnover increased to 3.77 billion units worth RM3.46 billion from Wednesday’s 3.33 billion units worth RM3.02 billion.
Among heavyweights, Maybank and IHH Healthcare remained unchanged at RM11.06 and RM8.70 respectively, Public Bank gained 6 sen to RM4.66 and Tenaga Nasional rose 8 sen to RM14.22, while CIMB Group was 5 sen lower at RM7.45.
On the most active list, Borneo Oil, MMAG and VS Industry were all flat at 0.5 sen, 3.5 sen and 19.5 sen respectively, Zetrix AI gained 3.5 sen to 82.5 sen, while ACE Market debutant Golden Destinations shed 5 sen to 40 sen.
Among top gainers, Malaysian Pacific Industries climbed 98 sen to RM33.98, Fraser and Neave gained 58 sen to RM30.68, United Plantations rose 56 sen to RM33.56, UMS Integration surged 40 sen to RM5.90 and Lifewater jumped 34 sen to RM1.48.
As for the top losers, Kuala Lumpur Kepong fell 42 sen to RM21.08, PPB Group slipped 18 sen to RM11.54, Gas Malaysia shed 14 sen to RM5.38, Ajinomoto dropped 12 sen to RM12.54 and Negeri Sembilan Oil Palms was down 10 sen to RM5.75.
On the index board, the FBM Top 100 Index rose 58.48 points to 12,306.82, while the FBM Emas Index added 62.36 points to 12,471.62 and the FBM Mid 70 Index climbed 138.40 points to 17,641.67. The FBM Emas Shariah Index advanced 74.77 points to 12,406.84, while the FBM ACE Index increased 36.29 points to 4,546.28.
By sector, the financial services index garnered 67.47 points to 19,715.86 and the industrial products and services index edged up 0.51 of a point to 188.10, while the plantation index slipped 2.96 points to 8,899.67 and the energy index slid 6.79 points to 817.22.
The Main Market volume improved to 2.08 billion units valued at RM3.12 billion from Wednesday’s 1.68 billion units valued at RM2.70 billion.
Warrants turnover rose to 1.06 billion units worth RM134.44 million from 813.08 million units worth RM94.77 million yesterday.
The ACE Market volume slipped to 633.28 million units valued at RM201.72 million compared to 834.19 million units valued at RM232.27 million previously.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 216.47 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (524.42 million), construction (178.16 million), technology (400.47 million), financial services (109.87 million), property (153.22 million), plantation (47.46 million), real estate investment trusts (11.02 million), closed-end fund (74,900), energy (186.15 million), healthcare (128.09 million), telecommunications and media (69.05 million), transportation and logistics (22.33 million), utilities (31.03 million), and business trusts (643,600).