Malaysian retail investors joined teams on social media and pushed up stocks of under-pressure rubber glove makers on Friday (Jan 29), taking inspiration from the recent GameStop trading phenomenon in the US.
Shares of the US video game shop chain surged from less than US$20 to a peak of US$492 earlier this week, after millions of amateur investors active on online forum Reddit rallied together to punish short-sellers by sending prices soaring.
In short-selling, investors borrow stock, sell it and then purchase it back at a lower price, keeping the difference. But if a stock unexpectedly soars, then investors are forced to buy it back at a loss.
Inspired by the US movement, Malaysian mom-and-pop investors Thursday set up their own Reddit group, naming it BursaBets after the country's stock exchange.
Like the US group WallStreetBets, BursaBets became an online rallying spot for those urging people to buy and hold shares, in this case, targeting glove stocks.
Malaysia is the world's top producer of latex gloves, and major producers saw their shares jump last year on strong demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the companies were hammered in recent weeks as vaccines became available and they were targeted by short-sellers after the government lifted a ban on the practice.
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