KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 16): Inter-Pacific Securities Sdn Bhd said with the market still devoid of fresh leads and conditions remaining insipid, the key index is likely to drift further with the downside bias also remaining in play.

In its daily bulletin on Tuesday (Nov 16), the research house said there was no follow through buying support from last Friday with market conditions quickly returning to indifference at the start of the week.

It said gaming stocks were hit by news that Kedah will ban numbers forecast outlets, while banking stocks saw quick profit taking.

Inter-Pacific  said similar conditions were seen in the broader market as market breath turned negative again with the buying interest evaporated in the absence of fresh leads.

Meanwhile, traded volumes remained moderate.

Inter-Pacific said as it is, the broad market conditions are still cagey with market players still looking for more credible impetuses to appear before making a decision on their next course of action.

It said in the meantime, most market players will likely remain on the sidelines and the lack of fresh buying is likely to prolong the ongoing market indifference.

“Nevertheless, the ongoing results reporting season could provide some impetus, but the lack of following could also curtail their upsides.

“As such, we think the FBM KLCI is likely to linger within the 1,520 and 1,530 levels for the time being with the other support and resistance levels at 1,515 and 1,540 points respectively,” it said.

Inter-Pacific said most of the lower liners and broader market shares are also attempting to find some support after their recent consolidation.

“However, there is no change to the near-term outlook amid the lack of following and impetuses that would leave most of these stocks to also drift for the time being,” it said.