Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session in a negative trend ahead of the interest rate decision by the Federal Reserve (Fed) which is awaited by the market.
At 12.40pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) was down 3.94 points to 1,541.02 from 1,544.96 at Tuesday's close.
The benchmark index opened 0.1 points firmer at 1,545.06 and now moved between 1,539.19 and 1,546 during this morning's trading session.
Market sentiment was negative with losers outnumbering gainers by 443 versus 431. Meanwhile, 453 counters were unchanged, 967 were not traded and 11 others were suspended.
A total of 2.19 billion units worth RM1.19 billion.
Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) research opined that markets are likely to be volatile ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) guidance.
He also said that continued foreign outflows coupled with renewed ringgit weakness could cause the KLCI range to remain tied in the short term.
Key support is pegged at 1,518-1,531-1539. Meanwhile, resistance lies at the level of 1,560-1,580-1,600 for now.
Bursa Malaysia heavyweight Maybank Bhd fell seven sen to RM9.58, Public Bank Bhd fell three sen to RM4.25 and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd dropped nine sen to RM6.52.
Meanwhile, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd rose five sen to RM6.86 and Tenaga Nasional Bhd was unchanged at RM11.50.
Among active stocks, TWL Holdings Bhd and MMAG Holdings Bhd strengthened by half a sen to 3.5 sen and 15.5 sen respectively. Meanwhile, MLabs Systems Bhd lost half a sen to one sen, and Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd was unchanged at one sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index fell 6.85 points to 11,511.7 and the FBMT 100 Index fell 10.91 points to 11,167.36.
Meanwhile, the FBM Emas Shariah Index increased by 42.32 points to 11,579.58, the FBM ACE Index increased by 8.54 points to 4,759.63, and the FBM 70 Index increased by 57.1 points to 15,807.47.
In terms of sectors, the Plantation Index rose 33.7 points to 7,312.46, the Energy Index rose 16.49 points to 941.9, and the Industrial Products and Services Index rose 0.2 points to 177.55.
However, the Financial Services Index fell 110.41 points to 17,170.97.
