THE MAIN INDEX snapped its three-day losing streak on Wednesday as it took a breather from oversold conditions in previous sessions.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) traded sideways for most of the day before jumping 1.1% or 78.51 points to 7,210.87. The broader all-shares index also climbed 0.54% or 24.17 points to 4,422.97.
“Philippine shares took a breather as investors focused on issues affecting other regional markets today, namely the Fed Chairman reiterating a muted inflation for the US, and the unfolding of the Europe budget debacle,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile message on Wednesday.
Investors took cues from US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s statement that there are no signs of inflation spiking amid a low unemployment rate. Markets in the US ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 0.46% or 122.73 points to 26,773.94. Both the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq Composite index fell, dropping 0.04% and 0.47%, respectively.
“Locally and in Asia, investors remain tentative as no fresh catalysts hit the market with China out for Golden Week,” Regina Capital’s Mr. Limlingan added.
Meanwhile, Papa Securities Corp. trader Gabriel Jose F. Perez said overall sentiment remained the same, with investors just waiting for the release of September inflation figures on Friday.
“The overall sentiment has been the same since the start of the week with participants waiting on Friday’s inflation data release. Until then, we might still see more of the low value turnover we’ve been encountering,” Mr. Perez said in an e-mail.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas earlier said inflation have reached 6.8% last month, or within a range of 6.3-7.1%. The Department of Finance on the other hand, expects the reading to be the same as August’s figure of 6.4%.
All sectoral indices ended in positive territory. Property surged 2.1% or 73.39 points to 3,557.67, followed by mining and oil which gained 1.54% or 133.50 points to 8,766.42. Industrials rose 1.07% or 111.66 points to 10,543.46; holding firms went up 1.04% or 72.99 points to 7,088.42; services added 0.46% or 7.02 points to 1,507.50; while financials posted an uptick of 0.31% or 5.03 points to 1,614.14.
Some 587.96 million issues switched hands, resulting in a P5.44-billion turnover, slightly lower than Tuesday’s P5.70 billion. Advancers beat decliners by a slim margin, 93 to 92, while 60 names closed flat.
Foreign investors dumped P281.90 million worth of funds on Wednesday, slowing down from the previous session’s P397.38 million.
Thirteen out of the 20 most active stocks for the day ended with gains, including Manila Electric Co. (up 4.91% to P358.80); PXP Energy Corp. (up 4.84% to P16.90); Ayala Land, Inc. (up 3.05% to P40.50); and Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (up 2.35% to P4.80). — Arra B. Francia

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