Plantation Stock Buying Lifts FBM KLCI To Rebound Higher At Midday

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 30  – Bursa Malaysia’s benchmark index rebounded from early trade losses to close the Friday morning session higher on October 30, 2026, outperforming several regional peers due to steady buying interest in plantation heavyweight stocks.

At the 12:30 PM midday break, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 1.15 points, or 0.07 percent, to reach 1,612.31 compared to Thursday’s close of 1,611.16.

The key index opened 0.70 of a point higher at 1,611.86 and moved within an intraday range of 1,606.72 to 1,612.99 throughout the morning session.

Despite the main index’s recovery, broader market breadth remained negative as decliners outpaced advancers 602 to 313, while 436 counters were unchanged, 1,429 untraded, and 66 suspended.

Total morning turnover stood at 1.89 billion units valued at RM1.08 billion.

Regionally, Asian markets displayed mixed results: Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.35 percent to 63,141.38, South Korea’s KOSPI dropped 3.90 percent to 5,705.88, and Singapore’s Straits Times Index slipped 0.44 percent to 5,372.28. Conversely, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.64 percent to 23,335.66.

Midday Heavyweight Gains, Regional Benchmarks, and Sector Movements

Key stock movers, active volume counters, and sector indices at the midday break include:

• Plantation Heavyweight Buying: Kuala Lumpur Kepong surged 38 sen to RM20.90, SD Guthrie gained six sen to RM5.83, United Plantations rose 24 sen to RM29.24, and Nestle advanced 22 sen to RM96.12. Public Bank added one sen to RM4.74, while Tenaga Nasional and CIMB traded flat at RM13.30 and RM6.89.
• Active Counter Movements: In active trade, Zetrix AI dropped 1.5 sen to 6.5 sen, Ni Hsin plunged 14 sen to 23 sen, GIIB Holdings decreased 18.5 sen to 35.5 sen, JAKS Resources shed half a sen to 14.5 sen, and VS Industry fell one sen to 33 sen.
• Top Market Decliners: Tech and banking decliners pulled down broader indices, led by Malaysian Pacific Industries (slumping RM1.16 to RM40.34), Mega Fortris (losing 36 sen to RM2.38), Hong Leong Bank (dropping 28 sen to RM21.12), UWC Bhd (down 25 sen to RM7.39), and ViTrox (easing 22 sen to RM10.80).
• Index Board Trends: The FBM Top 100 Index edged up 2.66 points to 11,853.62. Meanwhile, the FBM Emas Index fell 2.48 points to 12,053.41, the FBM Mid 70 Index dropped 20.27 points to 17,463.85, the FBM Emas Shariah Index lost 11.90 points to 12,072.38, and the FBM ACE Index slipped 48.36 points to 5,398.80.
• Sector Index Breakdown: The Plantation Index spearheaded sector gains, jumping 54.02 points to 8,690.92, while the Energy Index added 4.14 points to 848.50. The Financial Services Index fell 20.84 points to 18,517.10, and the Industrial Products and Services Index dipped 0.30 of a point to 177.09.

–NMT