Market Review

MY: The local bourse finished on a positive note, supported by gains in MISC (+27.0 sen) and PBBANK (+4.0 sen). However, market breadth remained negative, with 774 losers outpacing 324 gainers. Sector-wise, Telecommunications (+1.36%) outperformed, led by CDB and AXIATA, while Technology (-2.23%) lagged the most.

US: Wall Street ended mixed on Monday as an early rebound faded amid technology selling. The Dow gained 0.4%, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 fell 1.1% and 0.5%, respectively. Brent crude dropped 7.6% on Middle East peace hopes, supporting sentiment, but renewed weakness in AI-related stocks weighed on the market.

The Day Ahead

US: Wall Street may remain selective as easing oil prices offer some relief, while investors continue to scrutinise returns on AI infrastructure spending. October's ISM manufacturing PMI rose to 55.5 from 54.5, signalling firmer activity, while today's US midterm elections add policy uncertainty. Palantir (PLTR) is in focus after US commercial revenue surged 148% YoY to USD984m, surpassing US government revenue for the first time. Apple (AAPL) also beat quarterly revenue expectations at USD114.5bn, while AMD's results and data-centre guidance after Tuesday's close will provide the next test of AI-chip demand.

MY: The FBM KLCI may remain resilient, supported by domestic digital and data-centre investments. SKYECHIP offers exposure to AI and HPC chip-design demand, with silicon IP contributing 63% of revenue. Meanwhile, GAMUDA secured Google's water infrastructure project in Negeri Sembilan, supported by the latter's USD160m shared-water infrastructure commitment. INFOM also received a five-year Broadcom appointment covering 13 Asia-Pacific markets. Further beneficiaries include ISF, following RM83.2m in data-centre contract wins, lifting its unbilled order book to RM225.5m, while NORTHERN secured 189MW of solar-plus-battery projects to support two data centres.