The Malaysia stock market on Friday snapped the three-day slide in which it had dipped more than 10 points or 0.6 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,755-point plateau and it move higher again on Monday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat thanks to positive economic news and a jump in crude oil prices. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were higher - and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The KLCI finished barely higher on Friday following gains from the plantation stocks and a mixed performance from the financial shares.
For the day, the index gained 1.32 points or 0.08 percent to finish at 1,755.32 after trading between 1,751.62 and 1,756.17.
Among the actives, YTL Corporation tumbled 2.17 percent, while AMMB Holdings jumped 1.13 percent, Axiata skidded 1.13 percent, IHH Healthcare climbed 1.04 percent, Digi.com advanced 0.83 percent, Genting shed 0.63 percent, Tenaga Nasional added 0.57 percent, CIMB Group collected 0.48 percent, IOI Corporation gained 0.44 percent, Maybank lost 0.21 percent, Petronas Chemicals perked 0.14 percent, Sime Darby was up 0.11 percent and Telekom Malaysia, Maxis and Petronas Dagangan were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is firm as stocks moved higher on Friday, offsetting the pullback from a day earlier - and sending the Dow and the NASDAQ to fresh record closing highs.
The Dow crept up 30.71 points or 0.13 percent to 22,871.72, while the NASDAQ rose 14.29 points or 0.22 percent to 6,605.80 and the S&P 500 was up 2.24 points or 0.09 percent to 2,553.17. For the week, the Dow climbed 0.4 percent, while the NASDAQ and the S&P both added 0.2 percent.
The support was largely data-driven following the release of upbeat economic data, including a Commerce Department report showing a spike in retail sales in September.
The University of Michigan also noted a gain in consumer sentiment in October, while the Labor Department said consumer prices increased less than expected in September.
In earnings news, Bank of America (BAC) reported Q3 results that beat estimates, but Wells Fargo (WFC) reported revenues that missed expectations.
Crude oil futures rallied Friday amid hopes for strong demand from the U.S. and China. November WTI oil climbed 85 cents or 1.7 percent to $51.45/bbl on Nymex, having picked up 4 percent for the week.
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