Stocks end higher

The local stock index made a strong comeback yesterday after the previous day’s correction, led by Henry Sy-owned companies, as the country’s growth story attracted more foreign inflows.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index hit a new intra-day peak of 6,859.79 before closing at 6.833.77, gaining 108.64 points or 1.62 percent for the day. The index finished near the record-high closing of 6,835.21 posted on March 6.

Joseph Roxas, president of Eagle Equities, said the rally was due to “recovering world economies leading to bullish world markets and an exceptional Philippine economic outlook.”

Paul Joseph Garcia, senior vice president and head of Odyssey Funds at Bank of the Philippine Islands, said the day’s upswing was buoyed by strong foreign inflows to the stock market.

All counters were up, but the rally was led by holding firms (+2.2 percent), deemed as a proxy to the domestic economy.

Value turnover amounted to P12.64 billion. There were 113 advancers that overwhelmed 61 decliners while 40 stocks were unchanged.

Sy-led stocks SM Development Corp. (+6.33 percent) and SM Investment Corp. (+4.66 percent) led the day’s rally. Investors also snapped up shares of First Gen, EDC, ICTSI, Metrobank, Petron, Alliance Global Inc., PLDT and Bank of the Philippine Islands. Doris C. Dumlao