(RTTNews) - The Malaysia stock market has climbed higher in three straight sessions, gathering more than 35 points or 2.4 percent along the way. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index now rests just above the 1,465-point plateau although it's likely to run out of steam on Monday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft ahead of this week's FOMC rate decision, while disappointing earnings news may weigh on tech sectors. The European markets were slightly higher and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The KLCI finished sharply higher on Friday following gains from the financials and mixed performances from the telecoms, glove makers and plantations.
For the day, the index improved 15.48 points or 1.07 percent to finish at 1,465.80 after trading between 1,450.73 and 1,468.48. Volume was 2.048 billion shares worth 1.546 billion ringgit. There were 580 gainers and 278 decliners.
Among the actives, Axiata accelerated 1.85 percent, while CIMB Group strengthened 1.74 percent, Dialog Group surged 3.38 percent, Digi.com climbed 1.72 percent, Genting gathered 1.30 percent, Genting Malaysia increased 1.40 percent, Hartalega Holdings jumped 1.84 percent, IHH Healthcare and Nestle both rose 0.15 percent, INARI improved 1.48 percent, IOI Corporation and Top Glove both fell 0.50 percent, Kuala Lumpur Kepong added 0.65 percent, Maybank collected 1.26 percent, Maxis soared 3.22 percent, MISC gained 0.58 percent, MRDIY improved 0.47 percent, Petronas Chemicals slumped 1.38 percent, Petronas Gas skidded 1.06 percent, PPB Group was up 0.47 percent, Press Metal perked 1.37 percent, Public Bank spiked 2.93 percent, RHB Capital rose 0.52 percent, Sime Darby rallied 1.76 percent, Sime Darby Plantations tumbled 1.64 percent, Telekom Malaysia lost 0.54 percent, Tenaga Nasional advanced 1.25 percent and Petronas Dagangan was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is negative as the major averages were unable to held early gains on Friday, quickly slipping into the red and finishing near session lows.
The Dow shed 137.61 points or 0.43 percent to finish at 31,899.29, while the NASDAQ tumbled 225.50 points or 1.87 percent to end at 11,834.11 and the S&P 500 slumped 37.32 points or 0.93 percent to close at 3,961.63.
For the week, the NASDAQ spiked 3.3 percent, the S&P jumped 2.5 percent and the Dow climbed 2.0 percent.
The pullback on Wall Street also came as traders looked ahead to this week's highly anticipated monetary policy decision by the Federal Reserve. The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates by at least 75 basis points as part of its ongoing efforts to combat elevated inflation.
A steep drop by shares of Snap Inc. (SNAP) weighed on the tech-heavy NASDAQ after the company reported disappointing second quarter results and declined to provide guidance. Social media giant Twitter (TWTR) also reported second quarter results that missed estimates.
Crude oil futures settled sharply lower on Friday as prices fell on concerns about the outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended lower by $1.65 or 1.7 percent at $94.70 a barrel.
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