KLCI Downs at last moments as Europe opens strong

The FTSE Bursa Malaysia (FBM) KLCI plummeted during the final minutes of trading after remaining flat for most of the day. 3 Days Free Trial Signals
The benchmark index closed down 7.12 points to an intraday low of 1,622.84 points as at 5pm, which also represents a new two-month low for the KLCI. 

Turnover for the day was 1.43 billion shares worth RM1.6bil. The broader market was mixed with 387 gainers, 386 losers and 389 stocks unchanged.
The declines were attributed to several component stocks of the KLCI which hit intraday lows upon market close, including Tenaga Nasional Bhd and British American Tobacco.

Key Asian markets were mostly positive at market close, while European bourses opened strongly on Tuesday as investors await what will probably be the first interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve in a decade this week.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will meet in Washington on Dec 16 to vote on whether to raise interest rates after a decade of close to zero borrowing costs.
Among the biggest gainers in Europe were the Stoxx Europe 600 Index which gained 1.2% in early morning trading. Similarly, Germany’s DAX advanced 1.6%.
Bloomberg reported that despite the advances, markets remain jittery due to the Fed meeting, plummeting crude oil prices as well as recent losses in high-yield credit markets.

Market forecast for KLCI:

Yesterday the KLCI index had given a closing near to the support level and if the index will cross the level of 1620 then we are expecting it to give a negative movement in near term, however the movement of the index in broadly influenced by the upcoming result of FED meeting on interest rate decision.

The ringgit was recovered slightly and was last traded at RM4.3025 as at 5pm against the dollar, compared to RM4.3265 earlier this morning.

Brent crude recovered slightly to US$37.98 per barrel, while US crude rose to US$36.37.
Crude palm oil for third month delivery fell by RM69 to RM2,406 per tonne, having hit RM2,500 on Dec 11.
Westports led the decliners in the KLCI after falling 14 sen to close at RM3.85.Astro fell 9 sen to RM2.53.
Among the plantation counters in the KLCI, PPB Group rose 2 sen to close at RM15.38. Sime Darby fell 10 sen to RM7.29 while Kuala Lumpur Kepong closed flat at RM22.14.
Petronas Chemicals led the gainers after rising 15 sen to close at RM6.80. Petronas Gas fell 4 sen to RM22.10 while SapuraKencana Petroleum fell one sen to RM1.86.
  Among the banks, Hong Leong Bank closed up 12 sen to RM13.40. Maybank fell 7 sen to RM8.18 while CIMB was flat at RM4.40.
AmBank fell 5 sen to RM4.31 while Public Bank was down 2 sen to RM18.24.
As for telcos, Maxis fell 3 sen to RM6.51 while DiGi closed flat at RM5.03. Axiata rose two sen to RM6 while TM fell two sen to RM6.43.
Glovemakers were among the top gainers in the broader market. Top Glove Corp closed at a new all-time high of RM11.86 after gaining 86 sen today on the back of strong quarterly earnings. Meanwhile, Supermax rose 15 sen to close at RM2.91.
Among the key regional markets:

 Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.68% to 18,565.90;
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.17% to 21,274.37;
The Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.29% to 3,510.35;
CSI 300 fell 0.46% to 3,694.39;
Taiwan’s Taiex rose 0.41% to 8,073.35;
South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.27% to 1,932.27 and
Singapore’s Straits Times Index gained 0.19% to 2,820.34.
Spot gold fell US$3.02 to US$1,062.89 per troy ounce.