Stock Market Sense

MALAYSIA

Share prices rallied at the very last minute of trading today, with the main index hitting a new high of 1,447.04, mostly supported by plantation counters.

Sime Darby, RHB Capital and MISC were the leading heavyweights that pushed the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) 9.22 points or 0.64 per cent higher than yesterday’s closing of 1,437.82.

The local bourse, which was in the red during the morning session as a knee-jerk reaction to the murder of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto yesterday, managed to return to the black.

US Market

U.S stock markets had another rocky week. They fell sharply following the Fed's decision on interest rates (many investors wanted a bigger cut), but rallied after a plan to boost liquidity was announced. Global markets have had a tumultuous year, which started with multi-billion dollar buy-outs and ends with multi-billion dollar write-downs.