KUALA LUMPUR (July 2): The FBMN KLCI kicked off the third quarter of 2012 on a positive note, in line with the gains last Friday at Wall Street and firmer opening at key regional markets on Monday.
At 9am, the FBM KLCI edged up 0.72 of a point to 1,599.87.
Gainers led losers by 66 to 8, while 50 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 9.18 million shares valued at RM6.96 million.
Asian shares rose on Monday with sentiment brightening at the start of the third quarter after Europe agreed to shore up the region's banks, while investor attention is turning to the health of the U.S. economy, according to Reuters.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.3 percent, after soaring 2.7 percent on Friday for its biggest one-day rise in more than six months. The MSCI Asia ex-Japan share index ended April-June down 7.4 percent, after rising for the previous two quarters, it said.
MIDF Research has maintained its FBM KLCI 2012 year-end target of 1,600.
In a strategy note Monday, the research house said that as at June 22, 2012, the FBM KLCI was trading at 1,603.1 points or 14.9x CY2012 earnings.
It said that the valuation was by no means stretched as it sat well below its historical ‘peace’-period mean PER of 15.8 times which presently equates to 1,689.4 points.
Among the early gainers on Bursa Malaysia were Nestle, UMW, Petronas Gas, Maybank, UOA Development, WCT, MPHB, Felda Global, MISC and Hai-O.
