Market gains 17.8 points
The local stock barometer firmed up yesterday while regional markets traded with mixed sentiment ahead of next week’s US Federal Reserve policy meeting.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 17.84 points or 0.26 percent to close at 6,911.38. For the week, the PSEi lost 140.4 points or nearly 2 percent from last week’s finish of 7,051.78 amid volatile global financial markets. Since the start of the year, the PSEi had declined by 2.75 percent.
Holding firms, services, mining/oil and property counters advanced yesterday while the financial and industrial counters declined.
Value turnover was still thin at P4.51 billion. There were 86 advancers and 72 decliners while 42 stocks were unchanged.
The day’s gains were led by DMCI, which advanced by 4.11 percent while its mining and power unit, Semirara, rose by 1.29 percent as markets anticipated the reopening of its Panian mine in Antique.
Index heavyweight PLDT also rose by 1.73 percent, tracking upbeat trading in Wall Street. MPI was likewise up by 1.82 percent. ALI also gained by 1.93 percent.
SM Prime, GTCAP, Meralco and Metrobank all posted modest gains.
Outside of PSEi stocks, the notable gainers included FNI (+2.7 percent), DoubleDragon (+5.73 percent) and Puregold (+0.64 percent) which all gained in heavy volume.
Megaworld slipped by 1.63 percent while SM Investments, BDO, EDC, BPI and AC also faltered.
Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial index added 76.83 points or 0.47 percent to close at 16,330.40. Asian markets, however, were mixed ahead of the much anticipated policy meeting of the US Fed next week. Previously, markets were expecting the US Fed to start raising interest rates at this upcoming meeting but many had pushed back such expectations to December or early next year due to the stock market rout in China.
Due to jitters over the US Fed’s rates alongside concerns on the Chinese economy, foreign funds have pulled out a lot of money from the local stock market similar to the shakeout in most emerging markets. Doris Dumlao-Abadilla
