Malaysian shares fell 0.12 percent on Monday due to profit-taking amid a lack of fresh leads, dealers said. Dealers said profit-taking weighed on blue chips and index-linked issues. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index lost 1.28 points to close at 1,025.50. Turnover was at 3.85 billion shares valued at 2.35 billion ringgit (671 million dollars). Gainers outpaced losers 447 to 362.
"Regional markets succumbed to selling pressure as investors locked-in profits in the absence of fresh drivers. After seven weeks of gains on the local bourse, valuations are looking stretched," a dealer told Dow Jones Newswires. "There has been a sharp rise in interest in penny-stocks and shares of companies with relatively weak fundamentals. This (pullback) could be the beginning of a larger correction," the dealer added. The dealer said the bourse could experience heightened volatility in coming days as retail players seek to unwind positions.
The benchmark could trade between 1,000 points and 1,037 points Tuesday, the dealer said. Major index linked stocks took a beating. Telekom Malaysia lost 0.52 percent to 3.84 ringgit, Tenaga shed 1.97 percent to 7.45, Malayan Banking fell 2.35 percent to 4.98 and Genting lost 1.20 percent to 4.92.