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Malaysian Shares End in Red Amid Mixed Regional Performance; Bintai Kinden's Shares Drop 6%

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Malaysian shares closed lower on Monday, extending Friday's losses amid a mixed regional performance.

The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI shed 2.75 points to end 0.2% lower at 1,745.31. The day range was between 1,744.99 and 1,754.00.

In economic news, Malaysia's wholesale and retail trade recorded a robust 9.8% year-on-year increase in sales value for March, reaching 169 billion ringgit, according to data released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia. The growth was driven by a 15.7% increase in wholesale trade and a 7.5% rise in retail trade.

Malaysian Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir will soon roll out a strategy to safeguard domestic oil supplies as uncertainty linked to the Iran conflict continues to weigh on global energy markets, Bloomberg News reported Sunday, citing state media Bernama. This "Oil Supply Continuity Plan" will be formally announced by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

In corporate news, shares of Bintai Kinden (KLSE:BINTAI) dropped over 6% on close after it fixed the issue price for 36 million placement shares under the first tranche at 0.0719 ringgit per share. The mechanical and electrical engineering services proposed to issue up to 150 million new shares, or 10% of the existing number of shares, to private investors.

Meanwhile, Skyechip (KLSE:SKYECHIP) drew overwhelming investor interest in its initial public offering on Bursa Malaysia, with the retail tranche oversubscribed by 95.03 times. The integrated circuit (IC) design company's IPO comprises 400 million shares, including 135.3 million retail shares and 264.7 million institutional shares, priced at 0.88 ringgit each.

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