KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia closed lower on Tuesday as investors remained interested in small cap stocks.
At 5pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia (FBM) KLCI slipped 0.18 per cent or 2.88 points to 1,611.49 versus Monday's close of 1,614.37.
The key index opened at 1,617 and moved between 1,609.26 and 1,617.37 throughout the day.
The broader market was positive with gainers leading losers 796 to 491 while 461 counters were unchanged.
On the index board, FBM100 added 0.09 per cent to 11,939.21, FBM Emas 0.14 per cent to 12,373.29 and FBM Ace was up 1.41 per cent to 5,748.93.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice president Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI closed mildly lower as investors remained their interests in small cap stocks whereby the FBM Small Cap Index charged towards the 20,000 points, a level it has not reached since February 1997.
"Regionally, stocks ended the day broadly lower as investors cautiously waiting the US Federal Reserve's meeting on Wednesday for the latest interest rate decision.
"As for the local bourse, despite the FBM KLCI closing negatively, small-cap stocks remained strong, with significant buying in the construction and tech sectors," he said.
The firm expects foreign direct investment in data centres to continue supporting tech and related stocks.
"We anticipate the benchmark index to consolidate in the short term to absorb the recent uptrend and set the stage for further advancement.
"We see the FBM KLCI trending within 1,610-1,630 for the rest of the week, with immediate resistance at 1,620 and support at 1,600," said Thong.