PSEi nears 8,000 mark

MANILA, Philippines–The local stock barometer closed at another record high on Tuesday, moving closer to the 7,800 mark, after trading in the doldrums for most of the session.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 8.75 points, or 0.11 percent, to close at 7,793.40. The market rebounded in the afternoon on selective buying.

Elsewhere in the region, sentiment was mixed following the breakdown in debt negotiations between Greece and the European Union.

All counters posted modest gains except for the holding firm sub-sector, which slightly dipped. Value turnover for the day amounted to P6.65 billion. There were 93 advancers that edged out 81 decliners while 48 stocks were unchanged.

“Stocks have so far resisted after hitting an all-time high of 7,807, indicating some pressure on the upside. With some stocks hitting analyst targets and reaching overbought signals, as full-year 2014 earnings are released, we have observed rotation of fund flows as investors seek more attractive values in the market,” local stockbrokerage DA Market Securities said in a research note.

Resistance level for the PSEi is seen at 7,807, the all-time intraday high and psychological barrier at 8,000, DA Market said.

The PSEi’s upswing was led by SM Prime (+1.14 percent) while Megaworld, EDC, ALI, FGEN, JG Summit and BPI contributed modest gains. Outside of PSEi stocks, notable gainers were LPZ (+2 percent) and DNL (+2.94 percent).

On the other hand, the PSEi’s gains were curbed by the decline of MPI (-2.88 percent) and URC (-1.1 percent) while PLDT, DMCI, SMPH, GTCAP, Metrobank, Jollibee and Meralco also dipped. Nickel stock FNI fell by 3.55 percent.–Doris C. Dumlao