Malaysian shares closed up 0.68 percent on Thursday in line with gains on Wall Street and regional markets, dealers said. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gained 7.9 points to 1,163.43. Advancers outnumbered losers 439 to 213. Dealers said market sentiment was also lifted by gains in plantation, oil and gas stocks amid higher crude oil prices.
"There was a positive bias to trade today but momentum was weak while profit-taking into strength capped the benchmark's rise beyond 1,164," a dealer told Dow Jones Newswires. "All eyes will be on Wall Street tonight and the Shanghai Composite but pre-weekend selling is expected to dominate strategy tomorrow," he added. Among gainers, plantation giant IOI Corp rose 1.60 percent to 5.09 ringgit and mobile services provider Axiata added 2.0 percent to 3.10.