Philippine stock index sustains rise

Local share prices continued rising on Wednesday, catching up with the rest of regional markets after the Holy Week break and posting a fresh record high in more than two years. The Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 0.52 percent or 16.89 points to 3,270.37 despite Wall Street’s slight dip overnight, but may succumb to profit-taking as trading ends on Thursday ahead of another long weekend. “The market is showing a post-resurrection after the Holy Week break," analyst Astro del Castillo of First Grade Holdings, Inc. said in an interview. He added that overseas stock market gains had given investors an incentive to buy. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 3.56 points overnight, while the NASDAQ composite and Standard & Poor’s 500 index went up by 7.28 and 2 points, respectively. On the local front, trading was brisk, with 1.3 billion stocks worth P4.52 billion changing hands. The broader all-share index added 0.37 percent or 7.53 points to finish at 2,025.14. Gainers beat losers 71 to 49, while 53 stocks were steady. Bankard, Inc., the day’s biggest gainer, added over a tenth to P1.20, while Prime Gaming Philippines, Inc., the biggest loser, shed less than a fifth to P20.25. Despite the composite index’s gain, however, four of the six subindices went down — a sign of profit-taking ahead of the long weekend break. “Although the market is up, we can already see some signs of correction. We are moving to profit-taking tomorrow," del Castillo added. Property stocks surged by 3.15 percent or 36.77 points to 1,202.73, while holding firms went up by 1.12 percent or 22.87 points to 2,061.65. Mining and oil stocks bucked the trend, sliding by 0.6 percent or 57.75 points to 9,506.83, while industrial firms closed 0.32 percent or 16.16 points lower at 4,988.93. Service stocks also shed 0.04 percent or 0.59 point to 1,494.33, while the financial index lost 0.02 percent or 0.12 point to 694.5. Metrobank, the most traded stock, added 50 centavos to close at P50.50, while Ayala Corp. went up by P7.50 to P355. Dominant carrier Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. lost P5 to P2,500, while Bank of the Philippine Islands slid by 50 centavos to P45.50. Manila Water Co. and Aboitiz Power Corp. were unchanged at P15.75 and P12.75. — Nikka A. Corsino/NPA, GMANews.TV