PSEi closes 0.62% higher

The local stock barometer rose for the second straight session on Tuesday, extending gains after an upbeat first semester that brought back foreign flows to local equities.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 49.89 points or 0.62 percent to close at 8,093.60. Elsewhere in the region, trading sentiment was mixed.

In the first half of the year, the PSEi advanced by 7.1 percent, making it the third best performing stock index in Southeast Asia.

“The index is still poised to move to its resistance mark at 8,139 in the coming days as we draw on the latest movements abroad. A breakout might not be certain yet however as the market sets its eyes on June’s inflation print to be released on Friday, June 5,” stock brokerage Papa Securities said.

US President Trump earlier agreed to refrain from imposing any more tariffs on Chinese goods and to also allow US companies to resume doing business with Chinese tech giant Huawei.

The PSEi’s gains were led by holding firms, which surged by 1.05 percent.

Except for the property counter, which slightly declined, all other counters firmed up.

Value turnover for the day hit P5.93 billion. Domestic investors picked up stocks dumped by foreign investors. There was P145.25 million in net foreign selling for the day.

In the first half of the year, foreign investors were net buyers to the tune of P21.1 billion, a reversal of the P65.84 billion net foreign selling in the same period last year. Daily average value turnover improved by 9.7 percent to P7.84 billion year-to-date while market capitalization stood at P14.69 trillion, up by 8.4 percent since the start of the year.

Four of six sector indices finished higher in the first half, with the services sector posting the biggest year-to-date gain of 18.6 percent. The financials and mining and oil sectors closed 3.4 percent and 7.4 percent lower, respectively.

“The stock market benefited from a mix of positive internal and external factors. On the domestic front, we saw inflation stabilize which prompted an interest rate cut and a reduction in reserve requirement by the Bangko Sentral. The PSE is among the emerging markets that benefited from foreign fund inflows which are looking for attractive returns as US interest rates remain steady,” said PSE president Ramon Monzon.

Capital raised in the first half reached P37.89 billion.

On Tuesday, there were 118 advancers that edged out 77 decliners, while 51 stocks were unchanged.

The PSEi was led higher by Bloomberry, which racked up 4.08 percent. AGI also rose by 2.85 percent, while ICTSI, SMIC and JG Summit all added over 1 percent.

Megaworld, RRHI, BPI, Metrobank, Metro Pacific and URC also inched up.

Outside of the PSEi, notable gainers included Marcventures, which rallied by 22.12 percent.

On the other hand, Ayala Land, Ayala Corp. and Globe Telecom all declined.

Notable gainers outside the PSEi included Vulcan Mining, which slid by 11.7 percent. Century Pacific Food also declined by 0.93 percent.