Malaysian shares outlook - Higher on extended buying after KLCI hits record

Malaysian shares outlook - Higher on extended buying after KLCI hits record
29/10/2007 07:54:00
KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Financial) - Malaysian shares are expected to open higher
Monday on extended buying after the key composite index hit a fresh record on
Friday.
Stock markets across Asia are likely to continue to rally ahead of the Federal
Reserve's rate-setting meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday, with investors
expecting the Fed to lower interest rates to spur economic growth.
"After Wall Street's sharp rise last Friday, investors should expect an
extended rally on the Malaysian bourse," said Kaladher Govindan, the head of
research at TA Securities.
Among the market movers, oil and gas and construction and property stocks may
edge higher as buying interest is expected to accelerate with Prime Minister
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi set to officially launch the East Coast Economic Region
(ECER) today in Terengganu.
The ECER is an oil-and-gas project led by state oil company Petronas.
Palm oil producers may continue to rise after crude oil prices hit another
fresh record last week, touching the 92 US dollar per barrel mark.
Crude palm oil futures contracts traded on the Malaysian derivatives exchange
closed at a fresh record Friday as investors bet that soaring oil prices will
encourage demand for biofuel, an alternative to crude that can be produced using
palm oil as feedstock.
The benchmark contract for January delivery closed the week at 2,800 ringgit
per metric ton.
On Friday, the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) closed at a record level of
1,398.35 points, up 20.08 points or 1.5 percent. For the week, the KLCI was up
28.18 points or 2.1 percent.
The FTSE Bursa Malaysia 30 large-cap index gained 125.97 points or 1.5 percent
to 8,820.81 and the second board index added 1.13 points or 1.0 percent to
109.28.
(1 US dollar = 3.34 ringgit)
aipeng.soo@thomson.com

Source = osk wirenews