Philippine stock index soars to new high

MANILA, Philippines—The local stock index surged to a new all-time high on Wednesday as investors took their cue from an overnight rally on Wall Street that was driven by an announcement that major US banks could withstand the effects of a severe recession.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index jumped by 45.24 points, or 0.9 percent, to a record finish of 5,050.99. It also hit a new intraday high of 5,070.20.

“Investors’ interests, both local and foreign, have found very good returns on their investments. I’m confident that the index will reach a new high of 5,500 before the year is over,” said Ramon Garcia, president of local stock brokerage RTG & Co. and a former PSE president.

The day’s rally was led by the property and industrial counters, which gained by 2.65 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively. All sub-indices were in the green except for the mining/oil counter, which was battered by a shift in investor appetite back to blue chips.

PLDT, AEV, AGI, Metrobank, BDO, BPI, Metrobank, AP, URC, JG Summit, EDC, DMCI and ICTSI contributed to the PSEi’s rise.

PNB, Security Bank and Dizon also gained in heavy trade, joining the 103 stocks that advanced for the day.

On the other hand, there were 78 stocks that declined, including Megaworld and SM Investments. NiHao also succumbed to profit-taking.

Turnover for the day amounted to P7.9 billion.

“Philippine shares roared to another fresh record peak as it tracked Wall Street’s gains overnight,” said First Metro Securities, noting that the local index had now risen by 15.53 percent since the start of this year.

Overnight, the Dow Jones industrial average leaped by 217.97 points, or 1.68 percent, to close at 13,177.68. For the first time, the technology-heavy Nasdaq closed above 3,000 and the Dow ended above 13,000 on the same day. This was after the Federal Reserve announced that 15 of the 19 biggest US banks could withstand shocks from a severe recession.