Kuala Lumpur, March 1, 2026, 16:08 MYT — The session wrapped up with markets closed.
- FBM KLCI ended at 1,716.61, slipping 1.4%. The ringgit traded at 3.8902 against the U.S. dollar.
- Bank Negara Malaysia reviews policy March 5, with most in the market betting the 2.75% OPR will stay put.
- Early local trading this week is being shaped by global PMI surveys, with Friday’s U.S. payrolls report also looming in the background.
Bursa Malaysia opens the week following a sweeping selloff that knocked the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) down 1.4% Friday, settling at 1,716.61. The ringgit, meanwhile, wrapped up the session at 3.8902 per dollar.
The drop is noteworthy, given the benchmark remains close to the seven-year high set in late January; positioning, though, appears jittery. Into that backdrop comes a rate call from Bank Negara Malaysia on Thursday, with foreign data and shifting risk appetite adding pressure.
Banks and a handful of big index names led Friday’s slide, with losses sweeping across the board—842 stocks fell against just 376 risers, a stark read on market breadth. Thong Pak Leng from Rakuten Trade called the move a “healthy correction”. IPPFA’s Mohd Sedek Jantan, for his part, saw the action as rebalancing, not a sign of any deeper fundamental change. BERNAMA
All eyes are on Bank Negara’s Monetary Policy Committee, set to meet March 5. CIMB Treasury and Markets Research is not predicting any move on the overnight policy rate, expecting it to stay put at 2.75%. The team also flagged fresh uncertainty around U.S. tariffs and the potential fallout for trade and growth.
March 5 marks the year’s second policy decision for 2026 on the central bank’s official calendar. Bank Negara usually issues its policy statement at 3:00 p.m. following each meeting.
A fresh CEO steps in at Tenaga Nasional, a major player on the index. Datuk Ir. Ts. Shamsul bin Ahmad is set to take the helm from Datuk Ir. Megat Jalaluddin bin Megat Hassan starting March 1.
Deal watchers are tracking fresh supply too. Sunway Healthcare is out with an IPO aiming for at least 2.86 billion ringgit, a float that Reuters says could be the biggest Malaysia’s seen in nearly ten years. Shares are scheduled to begin trading on March 18.
Outside of Kuala Lumpur, attention may turn to the data. S&P Global’s week-ahead preview pointed to a slate of PMI surveys—those early-read business gauges—coming before Friday’s U.S. jobs numbers. A reminder from the note: rising Middle East tensions might sway oil prices and risk sentiment.
The downside’s pretty clear. Stronger U.S. data boosts Treasury yields and the dollar, squeezing financial conditions for emerging markets like Malaysia and making foreign investors pause. Bank Negara surprising with a policy shift could have a similar impact, just by a different route.
Traders are debating whether Thursday’s drop was just a one-off shakeout or the beginning of something bigger, especially for the banks and large industrials that powered much of the benchmark’s latest climb.
Markets won’t have to wait long for the next key events. Bank Negara is set to announce its policy decision on Thursday. Then, early Friday—March 6, 8:30 a.m. ET—the U.S. Labor Department will publish the February jobs data.
