Tuesday 21 February 2012

Telcos give boost, as KLCI closes marginally higher

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 21): Telco stocks led the FBM KLCI to end on a higher note after a weak start earlier on Tuesday, and after Greece secured a second bailout from the European Central Bank (ECB).

The FBM KLCI on Tuesday was 3.94 points higher, or 0.21%, to close at 1,563.78, with telco stocks — like Maxis (up 17 sen to RM5.98), Axiata (up 4.0 sen to RM5.04) and Telekom (up 7.0 sen to RM4.93) — pushing the index up by 2.60 points.

Although it started on a weak footing, the index firmed up after the midday close, in line with regional bourses.

Volume traded was 1.89 billion shares, valued at RM1.75 billion. Losers led gainers 442 to 370, while 345 counters traded unchanged.

Regionally, markets closed on a positive note; however, Asian markets did not rally as expected, after Greece secured €130 billion (RM519.09 billion) for its second bailout.

"It's a relief for markets, broadly speaking, but it doesn't mean that this is the end of the line," said Thomas Lam, economist at DMG & Partners Securities in Singapore, in a report by Reuters. "It's a difficult process, but it's inching in the right direction."

Shanghai's Composite Index closed up 0.75% to 2,381.43, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.25% to 21,478.72, and Singapore's Straits Index increased marginally by 0.13% to 3,025.07. Japan's Nikkei 225 was down 0.23% to 9,463.02, Taiwan's Taiex fell 0.42% to 7,921.50, and South Korea's Kospi dropped 0.03% to 2,024.24.

On Bursa Malaysia, top gainers included United PLANTATION []s (up 70 sen to RM23.26), Panasonic Malaysia (up 68 sen to RM21.20), Fraser & Neave (up 26 sen to RM17.84), and MALPAC HOLDINGS BHD [] (up 25 sen to RM1.80).

Among top losers were British American Tobacco (down 90 sen to RM53.00), Dutch Lady (down 34 sen to RM25.40), CHIN TECK PLANTATIONS BHD [] (down 20 sen to RM8.66), KLK (down 14 sen to RM24.00), and Nestlé (down 12 sen to RM55.88).

The most actively traded stocks included IFCA MSC BHD [] (up 3.5 sen to 13.5 sen), Green Ocean (up 7.5 sen to 32.5 sen), and Naim Indah Corp (up 1 sen to 48.5 sen).



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