KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Friday following Wall Street's surge as traders turned optimistic following a better retail data in July and lower jobless claims for the week.
At 9.20am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia (FBM) KLCI was up 0.62 per cent or 9.93 points to 1,622.87 versus Thursday's close 1,612.94.
The key index opened 9.26 points higher at 1,622.20.
The broader market saw gainers lead losers 531 to 128 while 240 counters were unchanged.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice president Thong Pak Leng said FBM KLCI ended flat yesterday despite continuous buying support from foreign funds as overall sentiment of the local bourse remained rather uninspiring. This was possibly due to the lack of fresh catalysts.
"We believe the trading pattern to remain the same for today and expect the index to trend within the 1,610-1,620 range."
"Meanwhile, crude oil prices closed higher on the back of a better economic climate in the US as the Brent crude closed at US$81 per barrel," he said.
Meanwhile, with the positive setup in the US, Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd expects buying support in the technology sector. It also viewed banking stocks could trend higher ahead of the second quarter gross domestic product data.