KUALA LUMPUR: News of Europe agreeing to a second bailout for debt-laden Greece has brought a measure of cheer to Asian stock markets including Malaysia's.
Analysts said news of the long-awaited rescue package, this time worth ?130 billion (RM521 billion), had been already priced in but, nevertheless, managed to lift investor sentiment when it was announced yesterday morning.
All key indices in Asia posted gains, except that of Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, which registered marginal losses.
Europe's key markets did not react favourably to the news and were in the red in early trade.
At home, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (FBM KLCI), which opened in negative territory and sunk to an intra-day low of 1,558.13 points, managed to turn around in the afternoon to close 3.21 points or 0.2 per cent higher to 1,563.78.
Market breadth was, however, negative, with 442 losers, 370 gainers and 345 unchanged counters. Some 1.9 billion shares worth RM1.74 billion changed hands.
"The market's (upward) momentum may be able to continue, the question is, for how long. News of the latest Greek bailout should provide some stability and we do have some better economic numbers coming out of the US," said Choo Swee Kee, executive director at fund management firm TA Investment Management Bhd.
A dealer sees the benchmark index's near-term resistance at 1,580.
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