At 9am the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) was up 0.65 points at 1,599.57 from Monday's close of 1,598.92.
The index opened strong 2.74 points at 1,601.66.
It opened higher in cautious trading mode after noting the profit performance on Wall Street as a result of the push of tech stocks and the potential for more sanctions against Russia.
On the broader market, investors saw gainers outpacing losers by 258 to 100, while 250 counters were unchanged, 1,629 untraded and 10 suspended.
Total turnover at 153.2 million units worth RM76.27 million.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd's note noted the KLCI's performance was weaker against its regional counterparts as the key index traded below 1,600 during profit -taking activity in selected heavyweights on Monday.
He added that the market is expected to remain volatile in the near term as investors continue to monitor the Russian crisis, but downside risks should be offset by continued foreign inflows.
In addition, the European Union's (EU) acceptance of Malaysia's Covid-19 vaccination certificate may bode well for the aviation sector and selected technology stocks may trade positive as the Nasdaq moves overnight.
Heavyweights saw Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) add 2 sen at RM8.98, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd (PetChem) and IHH Healthcare Bhd gained 1 sen at RM9.71 and RM6.29 while Public Bank Bhd and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd declined 1 sen at RM4.69 and RM5.29.
Active stocks saw BCM Alliance Bhd and Techna-X rise 0.5 sen each at 4 sen and 8.5 sen, Pappajack Bhd added 1.5 sen at 47.5 sen while Sapura Energy Bhd and Top Builders Capital Bhd remained at 4 sen and 2 sen.
On the index board, the FBMT 100 index reached 17.62 points at 11,161.83, the FBM Emas index added 20.27 points at 11,500.43, the FBM Emas Shariah index drove 46.80 points to 12,126.33, the FBM 70 rose 75.24 points at 14,016.34 and the FBM ACE collected 7.66 points at 5,778.72.
In terms of sector, the Products and Services Industry index peaked 1.05 points at 208.46, the Plantation index peaked at 38.28 points at 8,118.60 while the Financial Services index declined 26.96 points at 16,795.11.
