Sona fails to stir market; PSEi up only slightly

The local stock barometer ended a tad higher on Tuesday, hardly perked up by President Duterte’s fourth State-of-the-Nation address (Sona).

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 4.63 points or 0.06 percent to close at 8,251.46, driven by selective buying of large cap stocks.

Elsewhere in the region, trading was mostly upbeat as US-Iranian tensions eased on news that trade emissaries from the two countries might meet. Investors are also betting on new US-China trade talks.

Without any fresh catalysts from the Sona, investors are now looking at the next stream of corporate earnings reports.

“We did not see much action today with most blue chips ending flat. There was a lot of trading in second liners. We are hoping that investors gain more confidence and buy back into the market as more companies put out second quarter earnings. We may see more action toward the end of the week,” said AAA Securities head of research Christopher Mangun.

The industrial, holding firm, mining/oil and property counters led the PSEi higher.

The financial and services counters slipped.

Despite the PSEi’s gain, market breadth was negative. There were 103 decliners that edged out 88 advancers, while 57 stocks were unchanged.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P6.72 billion. There was P45.64 million worth of net foreign buying for the day.