Share prices ended up Thursday on bargain-hunting.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was up 45.54 points to 6,909.45, a 0.66 percent hike.
The broader all shares index was up 17.15 points to 3,677.48, a 0.47 percent hike.
Gainers edged losers 92 to 83 with 58 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P5.73 billion.
The peso closed at 52.27 to the dollar, down from 52.12 on Wednesday.
The currency opened at 52.15, and hit a high of 51.96 and a low of 52.36. Trading turnover reached $1.6 billion.
The Indonesian rupiah was part of a broad decline in Asian currencies led by the Japanese yen on Thursday after Jakarta’s surprise decision to widen the scope of a new palm oil export ban to include crude and refined palm oil, Reuters reported.
SB Equities Inc. said bargain-hunting pushed the market up “as traders took a breather from ongoing worries over slowing global economic growth and expectations of higher interest rates.”
“With the local market taking a cue from Wall Street ending higher following the previous sessions’ plunge, the PSEi shrugged off a soft open to trade modestly higher all session,” it said. Most actively traded BDO Unibank Inc. was up P4.20 to P132.60. PLDT Inc. was up P38 to P1,948. Ayala Land Inc. was down P0.40 to P33.60. SM Investments Corp. was up P9 to P860. International Container Terminal Services Inc. was up P1.40 to P220. Converge ICT Solutions Inc. was down P1.15 to P28.55. Universal Robina Corp. was up P0.70 to P105.70. SM Prime Holdings Inc. was up P0.35 to P36.35. Bank of the Philippine Islands was up P0.05 to P96.95. Ayala Corp. was steady at P732.
