The stock barometer advanced to the 6,900 level on Wednesday as investors cheered signs of improvement in the country’s external trade.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 92.82 points, or 1.36 percent, to close at 6,902.54, supported by about P1.09 billion in net foreign buying.
“The market rallied higher after trade data and manufacturing output for the month of April was released. Large-cap property blue chips, which remained heavily depressed, continued to lead the entire PSEi higher. Trading volumes also picked up,” said Christopher Mangun, head of research at AAA Equities.
The country’s April export receipts stood at $5.71 billion, about 15-percent lower than March, mainly due to the reimposition of tighter restrictions, but still 72.1-percent higher year-on-year and 3.6-percent higher than prepandemic April 2019.
Imports, on the other hand, dropped by 7.4 percent month-on-month to $8.44 billion. It was 140.9-percent better than the year-ago level, albeit still 6.4-percent lower than prepandemic April 2019.
“The data showed what we already knew: the tighter restrictions halted the economy’s strong recovery. However, the decline was not as significant as most expected it to be, which is why we are seeing some optimism from investors. With the pace of vaccination and the election—which always boosts the economy due to higher spending—just right around the corner, there is no doubt the economy will resume its strong recovery,” Mangun said.
With the PSEi currently up by 1.6 percent and on track to end its third consecutive week of gains, Mangun said there may be some profit-taking in the last few trading days of the week closer to the resistance levels between 6,900 and 7,000. He said any pullback should be treated as a buying opportunity.
At the local market, all counters ended higher, led by the property counter which rose by 2.57 percent.
Value turnover for the day amounted to P7.58 billion. —DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA INQ