RP stocks track Wall Street recovery

Local stocks gained on Thursday as investors hunted for bargains after Wall Street’s overnight recovery. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 0.37 percent or 12.22 points, finishing at 3,297. The Dow Jones industrial picked up overnight, rising by 53.28 points and returning to the 11,000-psychological level. The NASDAQ composite and Standard & Poor’s 500 index, meanwhile, added 0.26 and 7.65 points, respectively. “It was a relief rally. Bargain-hunters ruled the day, also because of yesterday’s plunge," analyst Astro del Castillo of First Grade Holdings said, adding that the local stock market is set to move sideways in the coming days. Del Castillo added that investors are watching out for first quarter earnings, and are set to position themselves in companies that performed well in the first three months of the year. The broader all-share index also added 0.44 percent or 8.87 points, finishing at 2,044.43. Four of the six subindices posted gains, led by holding firms which went up by 1.12 percent or 23.64 points to 2,126.2. Industrial firms likewise rose by 0.77 percent or 38.61 points to 5038.01, while service stocks closed 0.4 percent or 5.97 points higher at 1,493.64. Financial stocks also added 0.37 percent or 2.61 points to finish at 710.38. Bucking the trend were mining and oil stocks, closing 1.29 percent or 116.92 points lower at 8936.76. Property stocks also shed 0.37 percent or 4.53 points to 1,207.83. Volume turnover was at 2.76 billion shares worth P3.23 billion. Gainers outnumbered losers, 51 to 39, while 70 issues were unchanged. Top gainer Active Alliance, Inc. added P3.50 to finish at P15.50, while top loser Mabuhay Holdings Corp. shed six centavos to close at 38 centavos. Nine of the 20 most active stocks posted gains, led by Abotiz Power Corp. which added 25 centavos to close at P15. First Gen. Corp. and DMCI Holdings, Inc. also gained 25 centavos each, closing at P10.25 and P17.50, respectively. Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Inc. moved five centavos higher to P2.95, while share prices of Alliance Global Group, Inc. went up by 10 centavos to P5.80. International Container Terminal Services, Inc. and Security Bank Corp. meanwhile added 50 centavos each to close at P29.50 and P60, respectively. Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. finished 75 centavos higher at P16.75, while Metrobank’s stock price grew by P1.50 to close at P55. Unchanged were share prices of Energy Development Corp., First Philippine Holdings Corp., and SM Prime Holdings, Inc. at P5.40, P55, and P10.25, respectively. Dominant carrier Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., Ayala Corp., and Metro Pacific Investments Corp. were also steady at P2,485, P342.50, and P3.10, respectively. Stock prices of Universal Robina Corp., Ayala Land, Inc., and Banco De Oro Unibank, Inc. did not move at P25.5, P13.75, and P43, respectively. SM Investments Corp., meanwhile, shed P2.50 to close at P392.50, while Bank of the Philippine Islands closed 50 centavos lower to P45.50. –Nikka Corsino, GMANews.TV