PSEi inches higher as investors pick up bargains

Stocks climbed on Wednesday as investors picked up bargains and stayed on the sidelines while awaiting key events happening next week.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose by 13.11 points or 0.2% to 6,541.91 on Wednesday, while the broader all shares index went up by 8.16 points or 0.23% to 3,490.91.

“Bargain hunting helped give the market a slight lift amid continued consolidation and a lack of fresh leads,” China Bank Capital Corp. Managing Director Juan Paolo E. Colet said in a Viber message.

“Daily value turnover was modest… as many investors remain on the sidelines ahead of major news flows expected next week, including the State of the Nation Address and the Federal Reserve’s policy rate announcement and interest outlook,” Mr. Colet added.

Value turnover went up to PHP 3.66 billion on Wednesday with 489.05 million shares changing hands from the PHP 3.2 billion with 486.7 million issues seen on Tuesday.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. will deliver his first State of the Nation Address on July 24.

Meanwhile, the Fed will hold its policy meeting on July 25-26, where it is expected to raise borrowing costs by 25 basis points (bps). Analysts have said this hike could be the last one for the year amid easing inflation in the world’s largest economy.

The US central bank paused its tightening cycle in June after hiking the Fed funds rate by 500 bps to a range between 5% and 5.25%.

The local market ended higher to track gains on Wall Street overnight, Papa Securities Equity Strategist Manny P. Cruz added in a Viber message.

On Tuesday, the US stock market went up, partly boosted by solid financial earnings during the period which helped put the Dow on track for its longest streak of daily gains in more than two years, Reuters reported

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 366.58 points or 1.06% to 34,951.93; the S&P 500 gained 32.19 points or 0.71% at 4,554.98; and the Nasdaq Composite added 108.69 points or 0.76% at 14,353.64.

Meanwhile, Asia’s stock markets were mixed on Wednesday with growth concerns dragging on China’s equities while shares rose in Japan and Australia after healthy US company earnings and retail data bolstered hopes the world’s biggest economy could avoid a recession.

Back home, sectoral indices closed higher on Wednesday, except for financials, which declined by 5.81 points or 0.3% to 1,892.04.

Meanwhile, mining and oil rose by 111.38 points or 1.13% to 9,962.35; industrials increased by 51.52 points or 0.55% to 9,276.82; services climbed by 6.97 points or 0.44% to 1,586.05; property jumped by 8.47 points or 0.32% to 2,653.74; and holding firms inched up by 3.85 points or 0.06% to 6,369.45.

Decliners outnumbered advancers, 92 versus 80, while 48 names closed unchanged.

Net foreign buying stood at PHP 43.99 million on Wednesday versus the PHP 71.29 million in net selling seen on Tuesday. — A.H. Halili with Reuters