Share prices ended up Tuesday as investors took to picking stocks battered by recent drops.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was up 42.83 points to 7,840.70, a 0.55 percent hike.
The broader all shares index was up 15.02 points to 4,648.35, a 0.32 percent hike.
Gainers edged losers 94 to 85 with 64 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P6.49 billion.
The peso closed at 50.76 to the dollar, up from 50.93 on Monday.
The currency opened at 50.945, hit a high of 50.71 and a low of 50.98. Trading turnover reached $1.63 billion.
“Philippine shares rose to claw back Monday’s losses following the signing of the 2020 national budget by President Duterte and as geo-political concerns over the US-Iran issue eased,” said broker SB Equities Inc.
“Despite inflation for December rising more than expected and foreign outflow persisting, the PSEi tracked the upturn on Wall Street in the morning session and was further boosted in the afternoon following news that President Duterte would offer new contract terms to the capital’s water concessionaires,” SB Equities added.
Most actively traded Manila Water Co. Inc. was up P1.18 to P10.78. Ayala Land Inc. was up P0.05 to P44.20. Metro Pacific Investments Corp. was up P0.14 to P3.63. International Container Terminal Services Inc. was down P2.50 to P132.50. SM Prime Holdings Inc. was down P0.20 to P42. BDO Unibank Inc. was steady at P155. SM Investments Corp. was up P27 to P1,067. Megaworld Corp. was up P27 to P0.05 to P4.17. Ayala Corp. was up P15 to P800.
Other Southeast Asian stock markets also recovered from previous session’s losses, as investors tempered expectations for a widespread geopolitical conflict with no exchange of fresh threats between the United States and Iran.
Regional stock markets fell between 0.5 percent and 1.7 percent on Monday after the United States warned of major retaliation if Iran strikes back for the killing of its military commander and threatened to impose sanctions on Iraq for the expulsion of US troops from Baghdad.
Leading the gains in the region, Malaysian stocks rebounded from a nearly 1 percent drop in the previous session.
Singapore’s benchmark index rose on the back of gains in blue-chip stocks.
Thai stocks clawed back from their worst drop in over two months in the previous session
