MANILA, Philippines -- Shares were firmer in opening deals Wednesday as falling oil prices overshadowed poor quarterly results by major US companies and boosted sentiment on Wall Street.
Lght, sweet crude for August delivery settled down $3.09 to $127.95 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday amid a perceived decline in US oil demand and expectations that a hurricane coursing through the Gulf of Mexico would spare most offshore oil production there.
The closing price was nearly $20.00 down from a record high of $147.27 in recent weeks.
At 9:34 a.m. (0134 GMT), the 30-company composite index was up 19.98 points or 0.8 percent to 2,429.96.
The broader all-share index was up 10.67 points or 0.7 percent to 1,539.41.
