KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s blue chips advanced to another fresh all-time high in late afternoon trade on Monday, supported by local fund support.

At 3.20pm, it was up 13.25 points to 1,840.20. The previous intra-day high was on Dec 3 when it touched 1,840.14.

Turnover was 763.87 million shares valued at RM787.42mi. There were 404 gainers, 272 losers and 303 counters unchanged.

PPB Group rose 32 sen to RM15.20, United Plantations added 30 sen to RM26.50 while Petronas Gas gained 30 sen to RM23.36 and Bursa Malaysia 23 sen to RM8.06.

Reuters reported most Asian share markets marched higher on Monday, energised by a potent cocktail of upbeat Chinese trade data, a weaker yen and a firm finish on Wall Street.

Both the dollar and the euro extended their gains on the yen, with the common currency hitting a five-year high in what should be a boost to Japanese exports, profits and stocks.

– THE STAR