Malaysian stock prices are expected to continue climbing next week after rising o­n the back of the government's unveiling of the long-awaited stimulus package, analysts said today.

"The government stimulus package is just the shot in the arm the market needed to help it maintain its recovery streak," said Victor Wan, senior analyst with Mercury Securities.

"The ascent over the past two weeks have certainly improved market sentiments, which has been dour since the o­nset of the Iraq war and the Sars epidemic."

"Still the trading environment could run choppier as some investors choose to lock in gains derived from the past two week's run-up," he cautioned.

A timely boost

He added the package has "upped the hopes for the economy to meet the revised GDP growth of 4.5 percent for the year as consumer spending will be boosted by the combination of lower interest rates and EPF contribution."

Malaysian businesses, hit by war and the Sars outbreak, received a boost when Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad unveiled a RM7.3 billion stimulus package o­n Wednesday to mitigate the impact of SARS and revive a sluggish economy.

The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange composite index rose 14.62 points during the week to close Friday at 650.88.

Average daily trading volume was 225.86 million shares valued at RM401.49 million, compared with 168 million units worth RM313 million the previous week. AFP