Malaysian shares ended lower for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, with the key index down 0.4 percent after investors were disappointed by Anwar Ibrahim's failure in his final bid to lift a political ban.
The fall was also partly due to profit taking after the market hit its highest level in more than four months on Monday, boosted by an upbeat economic growth forecast for 2004.
The benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index, which had hit a high of 860.73 in the morning, finished 3.47 points down at 853.24.
Overall volume was 385 million shares worth 632 million ringgit ($166 million) as declining stocks beat losers 473 to 234.
Malaysia's highest court on Wednesday denied a request to re-hear Anwar's appeal against his corruption conviction, which prevents the former deputy prime minister from holding a public office until 2008, although it overturned a sodomy conviction and freed him from almost six years in jail two weeks ago.
Shares of tobacco firms extended their fall on concerns that sales would be hit after cigarette prices were hiked by a fifth due to a higher tax charge imposed by the government.
The country's biggest tobacco firm British American Tobacco fell 1.0 percent to 47.75 ringgit. Rival JT International lost 0.5 percent to 4.30 ringgit.
Among Kuala Lumpur's heavyweights, Petronas Gas lost 2.1 percent to 6.95 ringgit while toll operator Plus Expressways fell nearly 2.0 percent to 2.49 ringgit.