KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia stayed in positive territory at midday, buoyed by continued buying interest in mid-cap and small-cap stocks.
At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 4.86 points or 0.31 per cent to 1,594.95 from Friday's close of 1,590.09.
The benchmark index, which began the session almost flat at 1,590.26, fluctuated between 1,587.03 and 1,596.92 throughout the morning session.
On the broader market, gainers led decliners 483 to 414, while 463 counters were unchanged.
Turnover was at 1.93 billion units worth RM1.20 billion.
In a note today, Malacca Securities Research said buying support should continue on the local front, despite the selling pressure on Wall Street.
The firm added that traders will be watching for the release of several key economic data points, including the ISM manufacturing PMI and jobs data like non-farm employment and the unemployment rate.
"We see opportunities within the technology sector, where rising investments and demand for data centres, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud services should support trading activities for now.
"Additionally, we recommend selected sectors like shipping, renewable energy, building materials, packaging, and consumer for short-term trading opportunities," it noted.