Share prices rebounded on Tuesday, driving the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) higher as investors returned to pick up bargain stocks while bond yields fell.
A trader said market confidence also bounced back after the change in Senate leadership, indicating some serious government moves to address corruption in the implementation of flood-control projects.
The benchmark PSEi rose by 0.34 percent, or 20.85 points, to finish at 6,122.71. The broader All Shares also gained, appreciating by 0.24 percent, or 8.81 points, to 3,691.59.
Aniceto Pangan, trader at Diversified Securities Inc., attributed some of the market’s confidence to the recent change in Senate leadership, which he said brought hope that corruption in government projects would be addressed.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., said falling bond yields may have also encouraged a shift in interest back into stocks.
Advancers outpaced losers 111 to 85, while 60 stocks settled unchanged. A total of 1.99 billion shares valued at P6.23 billion were traded.
Foreign funds were net sellers for the day, with net foreign selling amounting to P215.89 million.
Japhet Tantiangco, research manager at Philstocks Financial Inc., pointed to the overnight rally on Wall Street as another factor buoying local sentiment.
Positive sentiment on Wall Street was fueled by mounting hopes of a Fed rate cut this month, following a weaker-than-expected jobs report in the US, Tantiangco added.
