Rally May Stall For Malaysia Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has climbed higher in consecutive trading days, advancing almost 35 points or 2 percent in that span. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now sits just shy of the 1,710-point plateau although it may spin its wheels on Thursday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on continuing concerns over the war in the Middle East and surging oil prices. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The KLCI finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares and telecoms, while the plantations and industrials were mixed. For the day, the index added 7.10 points or 0.42 percent to finish at 1,708.78 after trading between 1,699.02 and 1,709.93. Among the actives, AMMB Holdings improved 0.93 percent, while Axiata expanded 1.34 percent, Celcomdigi gained 0.62 percent, CIMB Group accelerated 1.91 percent, Gamuda advanced 0.98 percent, IHH Healthcare fell 0.22 percent, IOI Corporation added 0.76 percent, Maxis gathered 0.44 percent, Maybank collected 1.20 percent, MISC soared 2.16 percent, MRDIY rose 0.60 percent, Nestle Malaysia slumped 1.06 percent, Petronas Chemicals surged 5.34 percent, Petronas Dagangan jumped 1.86 percent, Petronas Gas sank 0.57 percent, QL Resources plummeted 3.23 percent, RHB Bank climbed 1.29 percent, Sime Darby spiked 2.13 percent, SD Guthrie dropped 0.87 percent, Telekom Malaysia vaulted 1.35 percent, Tenaga Nasional increased 0.71 percent, YTL Corporation plunged 2.40 percent, YTL Power rallied 1.48 percent and 99 Speed Mart Retail, PPB Group, Press Metal, Kuala Lumpur Kepong, Sunway and Public Bank were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street offers little clarity as the major averages spent much of Wednesday's trade bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before ending mixed.

The Dow dropped 289.24 points or 0.61 percent to finish at 47,417.27, while the NASDAQ rose 19.03 points or 0.08 percent to end at 22,716.13 and the S&P 500 dipped 5.68 points or 0.08 percent to close at 6,775.80.

The recent volatility has largely been driven by big swings by the price of crude oil, which rebounded on Wednesday.

Crude oil is regained ground after the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it has received reports of three vessels being struck by projectiles off Iran's coast, adding to worries about transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

Crude oil prices skyrocketed on Wednesday as the Middle East conflict fails to show any indication of calming down soon. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery was up $4.21 or 5.04 percent at $87.66 per barrel.

Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a report from the Labor Department showing consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with estimates in February.