Local stocks firm up

The local stock barometer firmed up on Monday as investors loaded up on property shares ahead of US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen’s closely watched speech in Jackson Hole.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index added 50.46 points or 0.64 percent to close at 7,981.21. Elsewhere in the region, stock markets were mostly cautious ahead of this week’s US Fed gathering in Jackson Hole, Wyoming where clues are keenly awaited on whether interest rates will raised.

“Recent market price action suggests that nervousness about Fed policy may persist ahead of the Jackson Hole symposium at the end of this week. With markets pricing almost even odds for another Fed hike this year, and given the retreat in the dollar and the rally in risky and emerging markets, this allows investors to once again ponder their portfolio exposure in the backdrop of subtle shifts in Fed messaging,” Citigroup said in a research note on Monday.  Doris Dumlao-Abadilla