Malaysian stocks tumble after election upset
Posted: 10 March 2008 1616 hrs

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KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysian stocks tumbled on Monday after the weekend's election upset, causing trading to be halted for an hour in mid-afternoon.

Trading was halted from 2:58pm to 3:58pm after the benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) went limit-down 10% to 1166.32 points, the first time the limit-down rules have been triggered since their introduction in the wake of the Asian financial crisis more than a decade ago.

The KLCI fell 10.5% when the market reopened.

Stocks fell on concerns that a weakening of the ruling coalition's grip on power will create policy uncertainty and could lead to a delay in infrastructure projects.

Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi's Barisan Nasional coalition was mauled in Saturday's election, losing its crucial two-thirds majority in parliament for the first time since 1969 and conceding four states to the resurgent opposition, which now controls five in all. - CNA/ir