Market may consolidate

The market may undergo a consolidation phase on May 27 following the weaker corporate results while investors would use the excuse from the threat of another nuclear test by North Korea to take profit.

However, the strong overnight close on Wall Street could underpin the sentiment. In the US, a more confident consumer translated into a rallying stock market on May 26, as JPMorgan Chase and American Express paced a nearly 200-point jump in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

According to wire reports, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 196.17 points, or 2.37%, to 8473.49, snapping a four-day losing streak. The index, which had its biggest point and percentage gain since May 18, is off 6.2% from its 2009 closing high of 9035, hit on Jan. 2.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 23.33, or 2.63%, to 910.33, also snapping a four-day losing streak. Every sector in the S&P 500 traded in the green, with financials and consumer discretionaries pacing the move.

At the home front, Bank Negara is scheduled to announce its first quarter GDP data in the afternoon and analysts are expecting a sharper contraction after a 0.1% growth in the fourth quarter. The second quarter is also expected to be weaker before signs of a recovery are seen in the later part of the second half.

With the run-up in the crude palm oil now stalling, with the third-month futures falling RM15 to RM2,430,  this could also see some profit taking on plantations. Crude oil slipped to US$60 per barrel.