Stocks end higher on bargain hunting before GDP

PHILIPPINE STOCKS rebounded on Thursday as bargain hunters took advantage of lower prices after the index plunged to a three-year low the prior session, but sentiment stayed cautious before the release of third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose by 0.3% or 17.53 points to close at 5,835.59, while the broader all shares index increased by 0.25% or 9.05 points to end at 3,543.43.

“The local market bounced back as investors hunted for bargains after the preceding day’s decline,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Manager Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message. “Trading remained tepid, however, amid investors’ cautiousness while waiting for the Q3 GDP data.”

“Philippine equities crept higher ahead of tomorrow’s GDP report, although value turnover remained tepid at a little over P5 billion as most investors remain on the sideline,” AP Securities, Inc. said in a market note.

Value turnover went up to P5.42 billion on Thursday with 891.42 million shares traded from the P4.72 billion with 406.27 million issues exchanged on Wednesday.

A BusinessWorld poll of 18 economists and analysts yielded a median estimate of 5.3% GDP growth in the third quarter. If realized, this would be slower than the 5.5% expansion in the second quarter but slightly faster than the 5.2% expansion in the third quarter of 2024.

Economy Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan earlier said that growth could have slowed in the period amid a corruption probe, slow public disbursements, global uncertainties and adverse weather conditions.

“Positive cues from Wall Street driven by the US Supreme Court’s skepticism over President Donald Trump’s tariff policies also helped in today’s session,” Mr. Tantiangco added.

US Supreme Court justices raised doubts on Wednesday over the legality of Mr. Trump’s sweeping tariffs in a case with implications for the global economy that marks a major test of Mr. Trump’s powers, Reuters reported.

Conservative and liberal justices alike sharply questioned the lawyer representing Mr. Trump’s administration about whether a 1977 law meant for use during national emergencies gave Mr. Trump the power he claimed to impose tariffs or whether the Republican president had intruded on the powers of Congress.

The majority of sectoral indices closed higher on Thursday. Mining and oil jumped by 4.46% or 530.4 points to 12,421.40; financials rose by 1.03% or 19.85 points to 1,945.83; holding firms increased by 0.28% or 13.41 points to 4,703.16; services went up by 0.15% or 3.49 points to 2,258.56; and property climbed by 0.15% or 3.36 points to 2,146.10.

Meanwhile, industrials went down by 0.16% or 13.86 points to 8,574.55.

Advancers beat decliners, 98 to 68, while 72 names were unchanged.

Net foreign buying dropped to P211.43 million on Thursday from P339.58 million on Wednesday. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno with Reuters