KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 15): Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd and SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd were among top FBM KLCI risers so far today, as Malaysian shares tracked Asian equity gains.

At 3:12pm, pay-TV operator Astro was up seven sen or 2.61% at RM2.75, while SapuraKencana rose five sen or 2.78% to RM1.85.

At 3:39pm, the 30-stock KLCI rose 11.33 points or 0.7% to 1,643.74. Across Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 added 7.16%, while South Korea's Kospi advanced 1.47%.

Reuters reported Asian shares snapped a five-session losing streak on Monday as China's central bank fixed the yuan sharply stronger, easing fears of depreciation for now, though a string of weak data from Japan to China and Indonesia suggested the bounce may be short-lived.