The local stock barometer resumed its upswing on Thursday, bucking the downturn seen across regional markets, as some investors picked up selected blue chip firms.
The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 36.87 points or 0.57 percent to close at 6,476.24.
Elsewhere in the Asian region, trading was mostly sluggish following a somber economic outlook from the US Federal Reserve alongside the new wave of coronavirus (COVID-19) infection seen in some US states. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 282.31 points or 1.04 percent overnight.
At the local market, the PSEi was led higher by the property counter, which rose by 1.6 percent.
The industrial, holding firm and services counters all rose by less than 1 percent.
The financial counter declined by 1.36 percent while the mining/oil counter lost 0.92 percent.
Value turnover for the day amounted to P7.04 billion. Domestic hands kept the local stock market afloat as there was a modest net foreign selling of P63.15 million for the day.
Despite the PSEi’s gain, market breadth was negative. There were 117 decliners that outnumbered 72 advancers, while 51 stocks were unchanged.
The PSEi was led higher by Megaworld, which jumped by 4.95 percent, while Ayala Land and Globe Telecom both rose by over 2 percent.
Ayala Corp., PLDT and SM Investments all firmed up by over 1 percent.
SM Prime, the day’s most actively traded counter, gained 0.76 percent, while Metro Pacific and Security Bank both rose by less than 1 percent.
On the other hand, GT Capital, BPI and Metrobank all declined by over 2 percent, while AGI lost 1.41 percent.
ICTSI, BDO and URC all slipped.
Outside the PSEi, among the notable decliners were Emperador and Eagle Cement, which slipped by 0.36 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.
—DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA