KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia closed higher on Monday evening as bargain hunting was seen on energy, property and telco stocks.
At 5.00pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 0.20 per cent or 3.22 points to 1,638.96, compared to Friday's close of 1,635.74.
However, the broader market was negative as losers led gainers by a slight 573 to 505, while 440 counters remained unchanged.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice president Thong Pak Leng said he remains cautiously optimistic despite market improvements due to varying investors expectations.
"We expect the benchmark index to continue its sideways trend until there is more clarity on the expected US interest rate cut.
"The FBM KLCI has stayed in a consolidation phase for the past two weeks, consistently above the 50-day exponential moving average (EMA)," he said.
Thong maintained the view that the index is still consolidating with a slight positive bias, likely around the 20-day EMA.
"We anticipate the FBM KLCI to trend within the range of 1,630-1,650 for the week," he added.