The FBM KLCI eked out marginal gains on Friday, extending its gains for a third straight session supported by persistent buying from foreign funds. We believe the market undertone will improve as investors may expect a slower pace of interest rate hikes in the US moving forward. Nevertheless, inflation is likely to remain high as crude oil price is still elevated above the USD103 per barrel mark on the back of tight supply situation.

The FBM KLCI rallied in a constructive Thursday session in tandem with the regional peers, taking cue from the strong gains on Wall Street. We believe the narrative that the US Fed will slow down the pace of interest rate hikes will continue to send positive signal to the regional and local bourses despite the contraction of GDP in the US. Meanwhile, Indonesia’s decision to lift its restrictions on the entry of its workforce into Malaysia starting 1st August 2022 should benefit the manufacturing and plantation sectors in Malaysia.

The FBM KLCI reversed earlier losses to end in the positive territory prior to the US Fed’s interest rate decision as concerns over rate hikes have been priced in. We believe the recent rebound should continue as the comments by the US Fed Chairman Jerome Powell have eased investors’ concerns over the interest rate hike outlook going forward. The positive momentum on Wall Street is likely to spill over to the regional and local bourses.

The FBM KLCI slipped after four straight session gains as investors braced for a possible US interest rate hike. Also, as the 2Q22 US GDP data will be released on the 28th of July, investors should prepare for more volatility over the near term, as recession fears may return as the US economy contracted in 1Q. Hence, stocks with defensive characteristics may be in focus.

The FBM KLCI outperformed the regional peers as the key index gained momentum in the final trading hour, supported by influx of foreign funds. Although the market sentiment has been improving over the past few sessions, we reckon that the investors may remain cautious ahead of the US Fed’s interest rate decision and could take a breather in view of the mixed performances on Wall Street overnight.

The FBM KLCI ended on a positive note last Friday amid the return of foreign funds which noted gains accelerated on the banking heavyweights. However, we believe the key index may succumb to mild profit taking activities following the overnight pullback on Wall Street. Nevertheless, the broader market may stay positive-bias over the near term as it has dropped significantly lower over the past 2 weeks into the oversold region. This week, investors will be watching closely on the US Fed’s interest rate decision.

The FBM KLCI propelled on the back of selected banking and industrial products & services heavyweights amid broad-based bargain hunting activities. The uptrend moves on Wall Street overnight signalled that the buying support on the local bourse should remain intact.

The FBM KLCI climbed in line with the broadly positive sentiment from the regional markets. Investors should see a positive-bias trading tone on the local bourse following the extension of rebound on Wall Street, supported by bargain hunting activities on significantly oversold stocks over the past few weeks.