PH stocks continue uptick

MANILA, Philippines—Local stocks extended their winning streak above 4,300 on Wednesday led by holding firms and property stocks.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index added 31.91 points or 0.74 percent to finish at 4,335.04.

The holding-firm counter was up by 1.67 percent while the property counter rose by 1.09 percent.

Among the stocks that gained in heavy volume were DMCI, JG Summit, First Gen, Unionbank, Lopez Holdings, BPI, Globe, Atlas, PSE, SM Investments, Metro Pacific Investments, FPH and AGI.

Turnover amounted to P4.6 billion.

There were 76 advancers versus 56 decliners while 43 stocks were unchanged.

Key mining stocks Philex Mining, Lepanto Consolidated Mining and Manila Mining Corp. went on two-day voluntary trading suspension at the PSE starting Wednesday ahead of a much-anticipated mining deal.

In separate disclosures, the three companies said they intended to make a “material disclosure” within the next two days and thus requested the suspension of trading until after such disclosure was made.

It was earlier reported that Manila Mining, a unit of Lepanto, was nearing a deal with Philex on a potential venture over the former’s Kalayaan property, the next-door neighbor of Philex’ Boyongan mine along the Agusan-Surigao corridor in Mindanao.

The PSE, for its part, said it had approved the two-day trading suspension of trading in the three mining companies’ shares, which had been heavily traded in recent weeks in anticipation of the forthcoming deal.