KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 23): The main index at Bursa Malaysia drifted lower in early trade Friday and was on track to dip week-on-week, against the backdrop of mixed Asian markets, as focus turned to the final US presidential debate was underway.

At 9.10am, the FBM KLCI slipped 1.37 points to 1,497.43.

The early decliners included Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd, Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd, PPB Group Bhd, Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd, Petronas Gas Bhd, Mega First Corp Bhd, Top Glove Corp Bhd and AEON Credit Services (M) Bhd.

Bloomberg said US equity futures were steady and benchmark Treasury yields remained near their highest since June as traders focused on the final presidential debate and lawmakers in Washington continued to haggle over a spending bill.

Asian stocks were mixed, it said.

Rakuten Trade in its daily market report said volatility on Wall Street continues as dictated by the still unfinalised stimulus package.

It said hopes for the stimuli has yo-yoed over the past few weeks with the latest that an agreement should be finalised soon.

“As such, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 153 points to inch towards the 28,400 level from the day’s low of around the 28,000 mark.

“Therefore, we reckon regional markets to see slight improvements following a weak performance yesterday.

“On the local front, we believe the FBM KLCI breach the 1,500 level with 1,510 being the immediate resistance today buoyed by glove counters on the back of the surging Covid-19 cases globally of late,” it said.