Bursa Malaysia stayed in negative territory at lunch break on Thursday (June 15) as investors digested the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) rate hike respite, despite the recovery in regional markets.
The Fed left its benchmark rate at 5.25% during the Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Wednesday night, but hinted at more rate hikes by the end of this year, saying that the monetary tightening needs to be maintained due to persistent inflation.
At 12.30pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 4.14 points or 0.3% to 1,381.28 from 1,385.42 at Wednesday’s close. The key index opened 2.46 points lower at 1,382.96 on Thursday morning.
The broader market was negative as decliners outpaced gainers 464 to 268, while 418 counters were unchanged, 1,134 untraded and 13 others suspended. Turnover stood at 1.85 billion units worth RM847.98 million.
