PSEi rallies back to 7,000

Local stocks rallied Monday, bringing back the main barometer to the 7,000 level, on rising bets that the US Federal Reserve will defer interest rate increases.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) racked up 157.8 points or 2.28 percent to close at 7,069.18, shrugging off the decline in China and Japan stocks.

Most emerging markets similarly advanced as investors increasingly believed that the US Federal Reserve would not lift interest rates from near-zero at this week’s meeting. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Index rose 102.69 points or 0.63 percent.

At the local market, all counters were up but the biggest gainers were the holding firm and property counters, which both advanced more than 2.6 percent.

Value turnover amounted to P5.18 billion. There were 101 advancers that overwhelmed 64 decliners while 37 stocks were unchanged. Reflective of improved risk appetite, there was P530 million in net foreign buying for the day, providing relief to the local bourse.

The PSE was led higher by SMIC, which surged 6.24 percent alongside Ayala Land, the most actively traded stock, which advanced 4.81 percent. Semirara and DMCI rose more than 3 percent as investors anticipated the reopening of the former’s Panian mine in Antique, which was shut down on July 17 following a tragic landslide amid heavy rains.

AC and PLDT were likewise up by more than 2 percent while SM Prime, BDO, URC, Globe and Metrobank all gained more than 1 percent. Meralco, ICTSI and FGEN also contributed gains to the index. Doris Dumlao-Abadilla