The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) rose on Wednesday, bucking the weakness seen in markets overseas and a sell-off in Wall Street overnight.
The PSEi climbed 0.71 percent, or 48.75 points, to 6,934.11 while the broader all-shares index gained 0.29 percent, or 12.29 points, to 4,297.
“Investors returned to the Philippine market as fund managers stayed away from US equities, which fell in an interest rate induced sell-off,” Luis Gerardo Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development, said in a note to investors.
Buying on Wednesday was mainly supported by locals as net foreign selling hit P1.47 billion.
“[The] prospect of the world’s leading central banks moving more aggressively to stamp out inflation rattled financial markets on Tuesday,” Limlingan said, pointing to the rise of Treasury yields—an indication that investors were fleeing to safer assets.
Local investors were, for now, looking past worrisome signs of high inflation, which would weigh on economic recovery, London-based Capital Economics said in a Sept. 27 report.
“The risks seem to be tilted toward higher inflation over the medium term in at least several major emerging economies,” Capital Economics said in the report titled “Have emerging markets vanquished inflation?”
“This includes Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia, the Philippines, Colombia and, to a lesser extent, Mexico and India. Together, these economies account for about a quarter of emerging markets’ GDP (gross domestic product),” it added.
Subindices were mixed on Wednesday. The industrial, financial and mining and oil dropped while holding firms, services and property stocks advanced.
Data from the PSE showed nearly 2 billion shares valued at P9.88 billion changing hands.
There were 109 losers versus 85 gainers, while 49 companies closed unchanged.
Monde Nissin Corp., the session’s most actively traded company, sank 4.3 percent to P17.82 per share.
It was followed by AC Energy Corp., down 3.42 percent to P11.30; Ayala Land Inc., up 0.15 percent to P33.05; PLDT Inc., down 2.74 percent to P1,631; and Globe Telecom, up 0.82 percent to P2,946.
Other actively traded names were Aboitiz Power Corp., down 3.56 percent to P29.80; and Converge, up 2.29 percent to P38 per share.