MALAYSIAN shares are expected to gain today as US stocks rallied for a third day yesterday on more positive economic news. “The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index is now mainly driven by external forces, so I expect the local market to trend upward today with at least a 10-point upside,” said an institutional dealer from a bank-backed brokerage.
“Najib Razak will be sworn in as prime minister today. The change of leadership should be a positive for the market. But the major concern, i.e. the outlook for the economy hasn’t improved strongly yet,” he added. Palm oil shares may experience a short-term bounce after a key government report showed US farmers planned to plant less soy this year than the market had expected.
“We do believe that the stock prices of plantation companies will react positively to the plantings report in the near term, at least until crude palm oil inventories start to rise again and clearer picture emerges on the actual plantings in the US in May,” said Macquarie in a research note published on Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 216.48 points (2.79 per cent) to close at 7,978.08 after breaching the psychological 8,000 barrier for the first time since February 13 as the market rallied for the third consecutive day. - Reuters