Stocks up, peso weaker on last trading day

The local stock barometer climbed for the sixth straight year in 2014, rising by 22.7 percent to end the year as one of Asia’s best-performing emerging markets.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index racked up 44.25 points or 0.62 percent to close at 7,230.57 Monday, the last trading day of the year, riding on yearend buying and an optimism on the US economy.

The peso, however, traded weaker on the last trading day of the year, as the dollar continued to rally.

At the end of Monday’s trading, the peso closed at 44.72 to $1, weaker by four centavos than the previous session’s close of 44.68 to $1. For all of 2014, it was lower by 32.5 centavos.

Volume was thin at $403.5 million from $399.80 million in the previous session.

Manny Cruz, chief strategist at local stockbrokerage Asiasec Equities Inc., said trading was buoyed by traditional yearend window-dressing apart from the kick from the closely tracked US Dow Jones Industrial Index.

“Not much fireworks today (Monday) given the long holiday. However, the market in general ended with a bang as we closed much higher compared to last year. Today’s performance also gave us a good snapshot for the coming year,” said Astro del Castillo, managing director at fund management firm First Grade Finance.

Across the region, most markets traded higher as data indicated that the US economy had expanded by 5 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, the fastest pace seen since 2003.

Among regional markets, Asiasec’s Cruz said the Philippines was the second best performing equity market in the region.

But the first half of 2015 will likely be “quite challenging” as markets await clues on the start of interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve, Cruz said.

“There may be outflows from foreign institutions due to the potential increase in US rates,” Cruz said.

“We’re also expecting the US dollar to be dominant,” Cruz said, noting that the local currency may depreciate past the 45:$1 level by next year. “That will compel institutional funds to sell local equities and convert to US dollars or invest in US bonds because they are anticipating the US dollar to appreciate.”

But Cruz said the market might be able to regain footing by the second half of 2015 as investors factor in improved corporate earnings. Doris C. Dumlao, Paolo G. Montecillo