Bursa Malaysia Extends Losses As Rising Oil Prices And Geopolitical Risks Weigh On Sentiment

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 8 – Bursa Malaysia ended lower on Thursday, October 8, 2026, remaining under persistent selling pressure ahead of the Budget 2027 tabling, as a renewed surge in global crude oil prices and escalating geopolitical tensions in West Asia further dampened market sentiment.

The benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) shed 10.77 points, or 0.67 per cent, to close at 1,601.01 compared to Wednesday’s close of 1,611.78.

After opening 1.67 points higher at an intraday high of 1,613.45, the benchmark index experienced steady selling, dropping to an intraday low of 1,597.94 during the mid-morning session before recovering slightly by the closing bell.

Market Breadth and Trading Volume

Broad market sentiment remained distinctly negative, with decliners heavily outpacing gainers 813 to 378, while 482 counters closed unchanged, 2,828 untraded, and 13 suspended.

Total market turnover contracted to 3.51 billion units valued at RM3.46 billion, down from 3.83 billion units worth RM3.52 billion traded on Wednesday.

Trading details across market segments included:

• Main Market Volume: Slipped to 1.88 billion units worth RM3.09 billion compared to 2.40 billion units valued at RM3.15 billion in the previous session.
• ACE Market Volume: Increased to 546.33 million units valued at RM217.71 million from 489.99 million units worth RM227.12 million previously.
• Warrants Turnover: Expanded to 1.08 billion units valued at RM155.11 million from 939.82 million units worth RM143.09 million on Wednesday.

Active Stocks and Index Heavyweights

Banking heavyweights led market losses, while select energy, gas, and consumer counters managed to buck the broader decline:

• Heavyweight Decliners: Maybank and CIMB slipped seven sen each to RM9.80 and RM7.26, respectively, Public Bank lost four sen to RM4.55, and IHH Healthcare fell two sen to RM7.88. Tenaga Nasional bucked the trend, gaining four sen to RM12.90.
• Active Counters: Top Glove perked up two sen to 87.5 sen, V.S Industry inched up half a sen to 33 sen, JAKS Resources rose one sen to 18.5 sen, Zetrix AI shed half a sen to 7.5 sen, while PUC finished flat at four sen.
• Top Gainers: Energy and consumer stocks led advancing counters, with Petronas Gas jumping 54 sen to RM17.80, Nestle recovering 42 sen to RM89.44, Hengyuan Refining Company and Chin Teck Plantations advancing 26 sen each to RM3.77 and RM10.54, Bus Cap surging 18 sen to 99.5 sen, and Gas Malaysia adding 15 sen to RM5.40.
• Top Decliners: Technology and plantation stocks faced heavy selling pressure, led by Malaysian Pacific Industries which plunged RM1.70 to RM43.50, United Plantations shedding 78 sen to RM30.40, Kuala Lumpur Kepong trimming 56 sen to RM20.54, UMS Integration dropping 50 sen to RM8.80, and Dutch Lady Milk Industries losing 46 sen to RM29.24.

Sectoral Indices and Market Performance

The majority of sectoral indices ended in negative territory, heavily weighed down by banking and plantation counters:

• Plantation Index: Tumbled 106.25 points to 8,869.79.
• Financial Services Index: Tumbled 184.87 points to 18,378.45.
• Industrial Products & Services Index: Eased 1.05 points to 178.83.
• Energy Index: Advanced 0.37 of a point to 839.34, supported by rising crude oil prices.

On the broader index board, the FBM Mid 70 Index slumped 216.42 points to 17,537.07, the FBM Emas Index lost 95.19 points to 12,029.76, the FBM Top 100 Index dropped 96.87 points to 11,805.11, the FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 87.32 points to 12,059.83, and the FBM ACE Index slid 27.60 points to 5,594.78.

–NMT