PSE trade surged 40.4% in Q1

TRADING activity at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) surged during the first quarter of 2015 as a succession of record highs increased the total value of listed companies to almost P15 trillion.

The PSE said in a statement that trading activity jumped by 40.4 percent during the period to P641.59 billion. Average daily turnover rose by 47.5 percent to P10.87 billion.

The total market capitalization of all listed companies rose by 17.6 percent to P14.98 trillion during the quarter, the PSE said. Foreign funds also helped boost local stocks—net foreign buying during the period jumped by 182 percent to P48.87 billion.

The brisk trading activity in the first quarter propelled the PSE index (PSEi) to an all-time intraday high of 8,007.98 on March 30. It also helped the main gauge register 23 record finishes in the first three months of the year.

The PSEi posted a 9.8-percent gain in the first quarter of 2015, the biggest quarterly gain since the first quarter of 2013, when the main index grew by 17.8 percent.

The all shares index, on the other hand, was higher by 6.9 percent. Meantime, four of the six sectors were up year-to-date.

The property and holding firms sectors posted double-digit gains at 13.6 percent and 12.3 percent respectively. The financial sector rose by 9.9 percent, while the industrial sector advanced by 7.1 percent. However, the services and mining and oil sectors were both slightly lower, down by 1.2 percent and 2.1 percent respectively. Miguel R. Camus