Stocks resume rally

Local stocks rebounded Wednesday as an analyst noted that interest in domestic equities remained strong even after the one-day drop last Tuesday as fund managers rebalanced their portfolios.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) closed Wednesday up 0.96 percent, or 69.74 points, to 7,356.59. The broader all-shares index rose 0.77 percent to 4,325.39.

All sub-sectors were up, with holding firms leading the way with a gain of 1.3 percent. This was followed by services, up 67 percent, and industrial firms, up 0.64 percent.

Bede Lovell Gomez, First Metro Investment Corp. vice president, said in an interview that recent gains came from a decision by China to cut interest rates, helping funnel fresh liquidity into emerging markets like the Philippines.

Gomez said the rally was temporarily cut short by an MSCI rebalancing on Tuesday but Wednesday saw investors jump back into the market.

“We believe without that rebalancing, the market would have [maintained] gains,” Gomez said.

Gomez expected the PSEi to remain strong through the end of the year, backed by easing commodity prices and better growth. He said FMIC was keeping its 7,200 to 7,300 yearend target.

Data from the PSE showed that a total of 5.16 billion shares changed hands Wednesday for P9.88 billion.

There were a total of 91 advancers against 81 decliners while 48 companies closed unchanged.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., the country’s biggest telecommunications player, led the list of most actively traded stocks as it gained 1.01 percent to P2,990 a share.

This was followed by Ayala Corp (up 1.31 percent to P694), Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (down 0.24 percent to P83.30), Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (up 1.33 percent to P137.30) and BDO Unibank Inc. (up 1.45 percent to P111.60). Miguel R. Camus