Malaysian shares higher

Malaysian shares closed up 0.43 percent on Friday following gains on Wall Street, dealers said. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gained 5.08 points to 1,178.74 on volume of 609.22 million shares worth 1.08 billion ringgit (306.08 million dollars). There were 402 gainers, 217 losers and 234 counters unchanged.
"Gains on Wall Street were the main trigger but momentum was very weak throughout the day," a dealer told Dow Jones Newswires. "Buying interest from local funds started the second wave in late trade but this only provided an opportunity for day traders to sell into strength," the dealer added.
Among gainers, the country's biggest bank by assets, Maybank rose 1.3 percent to 6.48 ringgit while state telecoms giant TM climbed 3.5 percent to 3.24 ringgit. On the downside, construction giant IJM fell 3.0 percent to 5.82 ringgit as cable company Astro slid 2.3 percent to 3.44 ringgit.