The local stock barometer bounced back to the 6,500 level on Tuesday as investors picked up oversold stocks in the absence of surprises from Pres. Duterte’s final State of the Nation Address (Sona).
The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) racked up 149.97 points, or 2.35 percent, to close at 6,522.58.
“It’s a relief rally. Market is already oversold. Most investors were already expecting it,” said Astro del Castillo, managing director at local fund management firm First Grade Finance.
“The President’s commitment to push Congress to pass the pending economic reform bills also boosted sentiment. However, the low value turnover today is quite disappointing. It seems like trading will still be cautious in the coming days given the COVID risks nowadays,” he added.
The highly contagious Delta COVID-19 strain has been a nagging concern for investors in recent weeks.
During his Sona, the President alluded to several listed companies, particularly the water concessionaires and ABS-CBN, but since there were no new criticisms and accusations, other traders said the market was relieved.
Before the pandemic, Pres. Duterte’s outbursts against some big companies had been a big concern for the market.
Domestic investors
On Tuesday, all counters gained, led by the property counter, which surged by 3.94 percent. The mining/oil subindex added 3.31 percent.
The financial counter climbed by 1.94 percent, while the industrial counter added 1.75 percent.
Value turnover was relatively thin at P4.3 billion.
Domestic investors continued to drive the market as foreign investors registered a net selling position of P329.92 million.
There were 155 advancers that overwhelmed 43 decliners, while 29 stocks were unchanged.
Investors picked up shares of ICTSI, which added 5.78 percent, while Ayala Land, BDO and SM Prime all rose by over 4 percent.
JG Summit gained 3.97 percent, while Ayala Corp., the day’s most actively traded company, rose by 2.78 percent.
SM Investments, Jollibee, URC and Meralco all added over 1 percent, while BPI firmed up by 0.48 percent.
Notable advancers outside the PSEi included Dito, which jumped by 7.45 percent, while Nickel Asia added 6.14 percent.
Converge and Monde Nissin both rose by over 1 percent.
On the other hand, LTG declined by 2.55 percent, while Globe Telecom and GT Capital both lost over 1 percent.