PSEi up 1.53% on PHL debt rating upgrade by S&P

The Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 1.53 percent Monday, reversing its six successive days of declines, helped by Standard & Poor's (S&P) upgrade of the country's debt rating on Friday. The S&P helped boost investor confidence, analysts said. “The index would be on its way up again" after S&P upgraded the country’s long-term foreign debt, said Astro del Castillo, managing director of First Grade Finance Inc. The PSEi gained 62.64 points to close at 4,139.32, according to the PSE's online market information as of 12:10 p.m. More than 795 million shares valued at P5.067 billion changed hands. Advancers outpaced decliners 93 to 40, while 31 issues remained unchanged. The debt rating will "help the country attract investments," said Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist of Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. It reflects on the country’s stable macroeconomic condition, he added. Even though the market turned bearish last week, AB Capital Securities Inc. pointed out that the country's underlying fundamentals remain positive. "[The] long-term trend remains bullish," AB Capital said in its weekly report over the weekend. The market started its downtrend after the PSEi closed at its all-time high of 4,397.30 on Nov. 4. The main index closed at 4.076.68 Friday. — VS, GMANews.TV