PSEi continues to advance

The local stock barometer firmed up for the second session in a row Monday as investors started to price in how falling oil prices could benefit the Philippines.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 51.41 points or 0.71 percent to close at 7,275.62, led by the surge in property stocks.

Trading was sluggish at the start of the session in sympathy with Wall Street but fresh optimism on the favorable impact of falling oil prices helped shore up the index, said Eagle Equities Inc. president Joseph Roxas.

As the Philippines is a net oil importer, falling global oil prices could mean a reduction in inflation pressures and a lot of savings on foreign exchange requirements.

The financial, holding firm and services sub-sectors likewise gained while the industrial and mining/oil counter declined.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P10.48 billion. Despite the PSEi’s rise, there were more decliners (94) than advancers (81) while 51 stocks were unchanged.

The main index was led higher by Bloomberry (+7.69 percent) and SMPH (+5.07 percent). AC also gained by 2.06 percent while URC and JG Summit rose by over 1 percent. ALI and SMIC also added to the day’s gains.

Outside of PSEi stocks, the outperformers were Cebu Air (+7.32 percent), Xurpas (+3.74 percent) amd RHHI (+1.71 percent).

On the other hand, the PSEi’s gains were tempered by the decline of Megaworld and Jollibee, which both fell by over 2 percent. PLDT, Metrobank, ICTSI, AP and BPI also faltered. Doris C. Dumlao