KL stock mart expected to fall further

MALAYSIAN shares are expected to weaken further today as investors take profits on Wall Street’s declines the previous day with sentiment remaining bearish ahead of export data that is expcted to still notch steep declines.

“We expect a retracement to at least 1,042 points,” said a trader with a local investment bank. “The economic indicators are still negative and we are only going to see some upbeat numbers towards the end of the year while the rest of the region appears to be coming out of the woods.”

A Reuters poll showed Malaysia’s April exports are likely to fall 22 per cent in April from a year earlier, accelerating from March’s declines. US stocks tumbled yesterday, halting a four-day winning streak, as falling oil prices hit energy shares, while less upbeat economic reports rekindled worries about recovery prospects.

Oil fell more than 3 per cent yesterday, dragged down by an unexpected build in US crude stockpiles and a stronger dollar. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 65.63 points (0.75 per cent) to end at 8,675.24 after an 11th hour rebound helped the blue chip index pare its triple-digit loss.

The tech-rich Nasdaq fell 10.88 points (0.59 per cent) to 1,825.92 and the broad Standard & Poor’s 500 index was down 12.98 points (1.37 per cent) to 931.76. -- Reuters