KUALA LUMPUR: The bears continued to maul Asian stocks on Feb 8, sending the Malaysian benchmark to a three-month low, as anticipation of policy changes in major economies US and China as well as budget deficit concerns in Europe hurt sentiment.
Jakarta Composite Index closed 1.72% lower at 2,475.57 and Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.05% to 9,951.82.
FBM KLCI sank as much as 1.07%, or 13.31 points, to 1,234.59 before finishing at 1,235.22, down 1.02% or 12.68 points. A total of 769.13 million shares worth RM1.32 billion changed hands, with declining stocks overwhelming gainers 608 to 119.
“It is more of a regional call,” Meridian Asset Management Sdn Bhd managing director Nicholas Ng said.
The FBM KLCI fell 1.1% to close out January at 1,259.16 after reaching a high of 1,308.52 during the month.
Market capitalisation was reduced to RM988.04 billion, down RM6.32 billion from RM994.36 billion last Friday, when reports on Greece, Portugal and Spain’s inability to manage their budget deficits had led to a sharp fall in global markets. FBM KLCI fell 1.35% or 17.13 points to close at 1,247.90 that day.
OSK Research analyst Shin Kao Jack said the near-term outlook remained firmly bearish. “For nearly a year, the bears have had nearly nothing to bite, and are extremely hungry,” Shin wrote in a note to clients.
From the current level, according to Shin, an immediate support for the index lies at the 1,233, followed by 1,200.
Immediate resistance is now seen at the 1,258-point level followed by 1,275. The research house “would not be surprised” if the FBM KLCI fell to the 1,175-point level.
TA Securities said core banking stocks such as AMMB HOLDINGS BHD [], CIMB Group Holdings Bhd, PUBLIC BANK BHD [] and RHB CAPITAL BHD [] were better buys on further weakness towards their respective immediate support levels at RM4.60, RM12, RM11, and RM5, respectively.
“With technical indicators for the FBM KLCI signalling more bearish conditions, investors may expect further weakness this week,” TA said.