The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange 100-share weighted composite index plummeted 95.50 points to end at 349.56 points, erasing the 81.62-point rise it posted Monday on heavy local buying.

The index had gained some 57 per cent in a rally that began Wednesday and pushed stock prices up to artificially high levels following the imposition of drastic currency controls and the sacking of deputy premier and finance minister Anwar Ibrahim. The controls included a fixed exchange rate for the local ringgit. Currency convertibility is to be abandoned next month and foreigners are being prevented from repatriating the proceedsof share sales for one year.

Analysts had seen the dramatic surge as a result of orchestrated buying aimed at showing to the world that prime minister Mahathir Mohamad had been successful in restoring market stability.

Anwar brushed off the rally in the stock market, adding ``I hope we succeed in both the currency and the stock market but this transient and temporary movement is not the barometer to reflect the actual economic matters.'' The market opened slightly higher Tuesday but slid into negative territory after 11 minutes of trading and went all the way down as players scrambled to cash in their shares.