Malaysian shares ended in the red on Thursday, snapping yesterday's gains. Investor sentiment turned cautious despite Bank Negara Malaysia's decision to hold the interest rate at 2.75%, as expected.
The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI, the main gauge of Malaysian stocks, shed 5.97 points to end 0.4% lower at 1,677.64.
In economic news, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) voted to maintain its benchmark Overnight Policy Rate at 2.75% at the conclusion of its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting on Thursday. The decision, which matched the consensus forecast tracked by Investing.com, keeps borrowing costs at their current level after keeping the rate unchanged in its previous policy move as well.
Malaysia's Industrial Production Index rose 8.4% year over year in May, according to data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). The pace of growth accelerated from the 8.2% increase recorded in the previous month. However, the latest reading missed the consensus forecast of a 9.5% increase tracked by Investing.com.
In corporate news, shares of Infomina (KLSE:INFOM) jumped over 5% on Thursday's close after it bagged a 21.1 million ringgit contract from Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan to provide technology infrastructure operations, maintenance and support services.
AEON Credit Service (M)'s (KLSE:AEONCR) profit attributable to shareholders jumped 23% to 95.2 million ringgit in the fiscal first quarter ended May 31, from 77.5 million ringgit a year earlier.