Malaysia Shares Trade at Near 3-Week High

Malaysia’s FKLCI rose 10 points, or 0.6%, to 1,712 by midday Tuesday, extending gains for a fourth straight session to a near three-week peak. Sentiment was buoyed by stronger U.S. equity futures amid hopes for progress toward resolving Middle East tensions, even as U.S.–Iran frictions persisted. Optimism also grew over Malaysia’s 2026 trade outlook, supported by nine consecutive months of export growth in March and resilient domestic demand. Analysts noted Malaysia’s position as a net energy exporter, particularly LNG, could further bolster prospects. Meanwhile, state oil firm Petronas recently said that fuel supply at all its stations is secured until the end of June. Sector gains were led by consumer services, utilities, and financials, though declines in energy minerals, process industries, and healthcare capped upside momentum. Among notable movers were Genting Bhd. (4.2%), YTL Power Intl. (3.3%), CIMB Group (2.9%), and Tenaga Nasional Bhd. (1.5%).

The FBM KLCI rose 13 points, or 0.7%, to 1,757 in morning trade on Tuesday, extending gains for a fifth consecutive session and hitting its highest level since October 2018, supported by strong buying in blue-chip stocks amid a firmer ringgit. Solid domestic economic data and policy fundamentals also continued to lift sentiment. Flash data showed Malaysia’s GDP grew 5.7% yoy in Q4 2025, accelerating from a 5.2% expansion in Q3 and marking the strongest growth since Q2 2024. Meanwhile, the central bank held its key rate at 2.75% last week, with headline inflation expected to remain moderate in 2026. However, traders are awaiting the Fed’s monetary policy decision and the release of China’s PMI later this week. Financial services continued to drive the index, followed by industrial products and services, and utilities, with notable gains in Public Bank Bhd (1.6%), Hong Leong Financial Group (1.2%), Hong Leong Bank (1.1%), Maybank (0.9%), and CIMB Holdings (0.8%).

FKLCI increased to 1759.00 Index Points, the highest since October 2018. Over the past 4 weeks, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index gained 4.59%, and in the last 12 months, it increased 13.23%.