PSEi continues to bait foreign investors
Foreign investors once again picked up local shares as the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) capped off a four-day rally on Friday.
The benchmark PSEi grew by 1.17 percent, or 76.43 points, to settle at 6,606.94 while the broader All Shares index inched up 0.89 percent, or 30.40 points, to sit at 3,452.44 by the closing bell.
“[Foreign] funds continued to enter the local market amid the improvements in the peso’s position,” Philstocks Financial Inc. senior research analyst Japhet Louis Tantiangco said.
Net foreign buying reached P842.26 million on Friday.
“Investors also digested the Philippines’ October foreign portfolio investments which registered a net inflow of $83.44 million,” Tantiangco said.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ stance to decelerate monetary policy tightening also supported market sentiment, the analyst added.
All sectors were up except for the industrial index, which slipped by 0.23 percent. Property booked the most gains with 1.55 percent.
About 478.53 million shares amounting to P7.09 billion were traded. Advancers led decliners, 100 to 69, while 42 issues were unchanged.
SM Investments Corp. was the most actively traded, with shares rising by 1.79 percent to P910 each.
This was followed by BDO Unibank Inc., down 0.98 percent to P131.50; International Container Terminal Services Inc., up 0.70 percent to P185.80; Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., up 3.60 percent to P56.15; PLDT Inc., up 4.13 percent to P1,665; and Ayala Corp., flat at P695.
Other active names were Bank of the Philippine Islands, up 3.13 percent to P102.10; Converge ICT Solutions, up 1.88 percent to P16.30; SM Prime Holdings, up 2.71 percent to P35.95; and Jollibee Foods Corp., down 0.79 percent to P252.
