MANILA, Philippines - Local stocks hit a new record high for the second straight trading session yesterday and for the 25th time this year.
Analysts said the market was buoyed by benign inflation and upbeat news on third quarter corporate earnings.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi), a basket of 30 stocks regarded as the benchmark of the market’s overall performance, advanced by another 0.29 percent or 15.79 points to settle at 5,473.61 from 5,457.82 a day ago.
The broader all-shares index gained 0.32 percent of 11.30 points to end at 3,595.47.
“The inflation report, economic news and corporate news basically continue to give investor confidence,” Astro C. del Castillo, managing director of First Grade Finance Inc., said in a phone interview.
“There was a positive outlook for earnings because we are in the earnings season,” said Justino Calaycay Jr., analyst at Accord Capital Equities Inc., said in a phone interview.
Del Castillo said the market traded sideways but on an upward bias given the slew of positive news.
For instance, Philippine inflation slowed to a four-month low of 3.1 percent in October from 3.6 percent in September and June’s 2.8 percent due to the deceleration in the annual increases recorded in the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages index, the National Statistics Office said.
Calaycay said benign inflation gives the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas elbow room to cut rates anew, which will benefit the stock market.
Advancers outpaced decliners, 96 to 78, while 35 stocks did not change.
Turnover slightly fell, with 11.98 billion shares worth P8.37 billion changing hands, compared with 8.62 billion shares worth P8.65 billion on Monday.
Del Castillo said foreign investors are still waiting for the result of the tightly contested US presidential election.
All subindices, save for the property sector that dropped 0.95 percent or 20.07 points to 2,091.92, were in the green. - By Neil Jerome C. Morales (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)
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