Stock market index breaches 4,300 level

MANILA, Philippines – A good number of Philippine stock prices went up on Wednesday, allowing the main index to breach 4,300 ahead of a crucial European Union summit that will tackle fresh measures to contain the region’s fiscal crisis.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index added 32.4 points or 0.76 percent to close at 4,315.17, tracking the uptrend elsewhere in the region, as investors increasingly bet that EU would come up with more aggressive plans to manage the fiscal contagion during the much-awaited summit.

The day’s upswing was led by the services, mining/oil and property counters, which surged by 1.74 percent, 1.69 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.  Only the holding firm sub-index ended in a slightly negative territory.

Turnover for the day amounted to P4.97 billion.

There were 87 advancers, which outnumbered the 72 decliners, while 50 stocks were unchanged.

PLDT, Metrobank, ALI, BPI, Belle, Aboitiz Power, Megaworld, SM Prime, ICTSI, SMDC, Meralco, AGI and AEV led the index higher.

Lepanto A (only for local investors) and B (for all investors) rebounded as bargain-hunters scooped up shares following the selldown on Tuesday.  The outlook on the mining firm’s gold production in the Far Southeast mining project in central Cordillera, based on a report by South African partner Gold Fields, was very optimistic.

Lepanto A bounced by 5.4 percent to P1.74 per share while Lepanto B rose by 4.9 percent to P1.91 per share.

Puregold also gained in heavy trade.

Meanwhile, the PSEi’s gains were tempered by the decline in the share prices of SM Investments, Globe Telecom and Ayala Corp.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Index was likewise up by 52.3 points or 0.43 percent to 12,150.13 on expectations of a wider EU bailout program.  The Dow Jones futures index was likewise 54 points higher as of the local market’s closing.