Malaysian share prices closed 0.29 percent higher on Wednesday for the fourth straight day due to buying interest in construction, property and plantation stocks, dealers said. They, however, said late profit-taking in some big-cap stocks limited the key index's gains.
The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gained 4.0 points to 1,377.14, off the session's high of 1,383.22. Volume reached 1.2 billion shares valued at 2.08 billion ringgit (603 million dollars) and gainers led losers 498 to 389. The local currency, the ringgit was quoted at 3.4440/4490 against the dollar.
"The bourse has been looking steady with the volume of trade improving," said a dealer at a local brokerage. "The short-term outlook for the bourse looks pretty positive," he added. Index heavyweights Telekom Malaysia gained 20 sen to 10.50 ringgit, while national utility Tenaga added 10 sen to 11.50. Maybank, the largest bank in the country, was flat at 12.30 ringgit.
Plantation stocks were mostly higher, with IOI Corp, the country's largest palm oil producer, up 10 sen at 5.30 ringgit, and Kuala Lumpur Kepong, a non-government controlled palm oil major, gained 20 sen to 13.20.
British American Tobacco lost 1.50 ringgit to 43.25 ringgit, extending losses for the second consecutive day after the government announced the raising of excise duty for cigarettes. Cigarette prices in Malaysia have risen by about 300 percent over the past three years, according to industry data.
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