PSEi back above 6,700 as mart awaits BSP move
THE MAIN INDEX climbed to the 6,700 level on Wednesday, propped up by bargain hunting before the policy meeting of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), a strong peso, and positive spillovers from Wall Street overnight.
The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose by 0.82% or 54.52 points to end at 6,704.96 on Wednesday, while the broader all shares index climbed by 0.53% or 19.30 points to close at 3,629.30. This was the PSEi’s best close in almost three weeks or since it finished at 6,726.01 on July 26.
“Investors continued to bargain hunt ahead of the BSP meeting [on Thursday], while more economic data and corporate earnings continue to underscore that the economy continues to perform remarkably well,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.
A BusinessWorld poll showed that nine out of 16 analysts surveyed expect the Monetary Board to deliver a 25-basis-point (bp) rate cut at Thursday’s policy meeting, bringing the target reverse repurchase rate to 6.25% from the current over 17-year high of 6.5%, where it has been since October 2023.
On the other hand, seven others expect the BSP to keep rates steady. The Monetary Board last reduced rates in November 2020, when it delivered a 25-bp cut and brought the key rate to 2% to support economic recovery amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“The local market extended its rise this Wednesday, gaining 0.82%. The positive spillovers from Wall Street’s overnight rally driven by the US’ below-expected producer price index numbers gave a boost in [Wednesday’s] session,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message.
“The local currency’s recent strengthening against the US dollar also helped in sustaining the market’s upward movement,” Mr. Tantiangco added.
The peso inched up to P56.955 per dollar on Wednesday from P56.96 on Tuesday, according to Bankers Association of the Philippines data.
This was a new near four-month high for the local unit as it was its best finish since closing at P56.808 on April 15.
All sectoral indices closed higher on Wednesday. Property rose by 1.68% or 44.75 points to 2,693.91; mining and oil increased by 1.44% or 116.87 points to 8,219.39; industrials went up by 1.32% or 120.18 points to 9,166.15; holding firms jumped by 0.79% or 45.70 points to 5,788.74; services improved by 0.06% or 1.27 points to 2,088.22; and financials inched up by 0.02% or 0.44 point to 1,984.65.
Value turnover went up to P6.96 billion on Wednesday with 670.22 million issues changing hands from P4.98 billion with 607.05 million shares traded on Tuesday.
Decliners outnumbered advancers, 105 versus 98, while 54 issues were unchanged.
Net foreign buying rose to P457.52 million on Wednesday from P121.63 million on Tuesday. — R.M.D. Ochave
