KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia remained higher at midday as bargain-hunting continued in most heavyweight counters amid the announcement of the country's robust economic data by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). Malaysia's economy expanded 5.9 per cent in the second quarter of 2024 (2Q 2024), exceeding earlier projections of 5.8 per cent. At 12.30 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) gained 0.30 per cent, or 4.87 points, to 1,617.81 from Thursday's close of 1,612.94. The index began the day 9.26 points higher at 1,622.20 and fluctuated between 1,617.18 and 1,624.71 throughout the morning session. In the broader market, gainers led decliners 655 to 284, with 448 counters unchanged, 1,099 untraded and 23 suspended. Turnover stood at 1.96 billion units worth RM1.34 billion. BNM governor Datuk Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said today the central bank views Malaysia's growth as being on track to end the year near the upper end of the 4.0-5.0 per cent forecast range. The country's economy expanded by 4.2 per cent in 1 Q 2024, bringing the first half of the year's growth to an average of 5.05 per cent. The gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 2.9 per cent in 2Q 2023. 'The 5.9 per cent GDP growth in 2Q 2024 is the highest since 4Q 2022,' he said at a press conference here today. Among the major counters, Maybank, Public Bank, and IHH were all flat at RM10.18, RM4.27, and RM6.30, respectively, while CIMB rose 7.0 sen to RM7.60 and Tenaga added 2.0 sen to RM13.86. Among the most active counters, Cape EMS slid 1.5 sen to 41.5 sen, SP Setia and Hextar Healthcare were both flat at RM1.29 and 24 sen, respectively, and Sime Darby Property bounced 8.0 sen to RM1.39. Of the top gainers, Dutch Lady jumped RM1.24 to RM31.84, Panasonic Manufacturing rose 34 sen to RM20.00 and MPI added 18 sen to RM36.70. On the index front, the FBM Emas Index expanded 60.85 points to 12,300.67, the FBMT 100 Index ticked up 54.03 points to 11,941.71 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index bagged 73.61 points to 12,385.33. The FBM 70 Index leapt 147.34 point s to 17,831.19, and the FBM ACE Index was 72.36 points higher at 5,384.43. Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index strengthened 31.68 points to 18,319.74 and the Plantation Index rose 21.50 points to 7,163.89. The Industrial Products and Services Index increased by 1.95 points to 182.57 and the Energy Index was 17.24 points higher at 945.76. Source:BERNAMA News Agency