Share prices ended higher Wednesday, tracking overseas leads. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was up 17.94 points to 7,419.10, a 0.24 percent hike. The broader all shares index was down 2.10 points to 3,935.54, a 0.05 percent drop.
Losers edged gainers 93 with 88 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P8.62 billion. The peso closed at 50.34 to the dollar, up from 50.59. The currency opened at 50.57 and hit a high of 50.34 and a low of 50.62.
Trading turnover reached $909.04 million. Currencies in Asia’s emerging markets were broadly subdued on Wednesday, as regional assets remained resilient, even as rate hike bets in the US continued to push the dollar higher following Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s reappointment, Reuters reported.
While the Thai baht fell 0.8 percent to hit their lowest since Nov. 5, the yuan, Philippine peso, and Taiwanese dollar traded flat to up 0.1 percent.
“The pressure on the Asian currencies is far more limited than what you would have expected given the bounce in the dollar,” said Mitul Kotecha, EM Strategist at TD Securities.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., said investors also bought up shares “following US President Joe Biden’s remark that his administration will tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of a global effort by energy-consuming nations to calm 2021s rapid spike in fuel prices.”
Japhet Tantiangco, analyst at Philstocks Financial Inc., said investors “cheered the ongoing developments in the country’s fiscal policies for next year with our 2022 national budget targeted to be approved on third and final reading by the Senate next week, and the validity of the 2021 national budget likely to be extended until end-2022.”
Most actively traded Monde Nissin Corp. was down P0.96 to P18.02. Converge ICT Holdings Inc. was down P0.50 to P31.50. AC Energy Corp. was down P0.20 to P11.84. BDO Unibank Inc. was down P1.40 to P132.10. International Container Terminal Services Inc. was down P2.90 to P195.10. SM Prime Holdings Inc. was up P0.65 to P37.50. Ayala Corp. was down P4 to P893.50. Globe Telecom Inc. was steady at P3,600. GT Capital Holdings Inc. was up P10 to P620. PLDT Inc. was up P25 to P1,750.
