Malaysian share prices closed 0.52 percent higher Thursday with sentiment boosted by a drop in crude oil prices in New York overnight, dealers said. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gained 5.25 points at 975.62 and volume traded was 840.37 million shares valued at 1.122 billion ringgit (303.74 million dollars).
Gainers led losers 507 to 225, with 321 stocks unchanged. The price of light, sweet crude settled down 93 cents at 57.59 dollars on the New York Mercantile Exchange overnight. It was the lowest settlement of the year, amid increasing doubts about whether Opec's members could agree on an immediate cut in production.
"Today we saw a real breakout, which has not happened for some time," said Steven Soo of TA Securities, referring to a sustained rally in the benchmark index to solid ground above the psychological resistance level of 970 points.
At the close, airline stocks Air Asia and Malaysia Airlines gained from the fall in oil prices, with Air Asia jumping 0.10 ringgit to 1.64 while MAS rose 0.04 ringgit to 3.48.
Among the heavyweights, Tenaga gained 0.05 ringgit to 9.80 ringgit ahead of the release of its fourth-quarter and fiscal year to August results. Maybank was flat at 11.30 while Telekom Malaysia was up 0.05 ringgit to 9.05.