PSEi climbs on BSP easing bets, bargain hunting

Philippine shares edged higher on Wednesday, buoyed by last-minute bargain hunting and growing expectations of a Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) rate cut next month.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) went up by 0.10% or 6.20 points to close at 6,166.05, while the broader all shares index increased by 0.53% or 19.53 points to 3,676.71.

“Last-minute bargain hunting brought the local market higher this Wednesday. Rising hopes that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas will ease their policy in their April meeting helped in lifting sentiment,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message.

BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona, Jr. said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on the sidelines of the HSBC Global Investment Summit in Hong Kong on Tuesday that there is a “good chance” that the Monetary Board will cut rates by 25 basis points (bps) at their April 10 meeting, Bloomberg reported.

Mr. Remolona said the BSP remains on an easing cycle and could bring down borrowing costs by as much as 75 bps this year depending on data.

The central bank has reduced benchmark interest rates by a cumulative 75 bps since it began its rate-cut cycle in August last year, with its policy rate currently at 5.75%.

The Monetary Board in February unexpectedly kept rates unchanged amid uncertainties stemming from the Trump administration’s policies.

“Philippine shares made a modest recovery as Wall Street also closed higher on Tuesday, extending gains as investors bet on narrower US tariffs,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.01% or 4.18 points to 42,587.50; the S&P 500 gained by 0.16% or 9.08 points to end at 5,776.65; and the Nasdaq Composite climbed by 0.46% or 83.27 points to 18,271.86.

Majority of sectoral indices posted gains on Wednesday. Services increased by 1.7% or 34.05 points to 2,032.03; mining and oil went up by 1.42% or 130.12 points to 9,291.43; financials climbed by 0.36% or 8.59 points to 2,397.42; and industrials rose by 0.29% or 25.41 points to 8,752.70.

Meanwhile, property declined by 2.13% or 47.11 points to 2,162.55 and holding firms shed 0.47% or 24.17 points to end at 5,031.71.

“Puregold Price Club, Inc. was the day’s index leader, jumping 6.46% to P28. Bloomberry Resorts Corp. was at the tail end, falling 6.69% to P3.07,” Mr. Tantiangco said.

Value turnover went up to PHP 4.91 billion on Wednesday with 1.06 billion shares exchanged from the PHP 4.75 billion with 520.59 million issues traded on Tuesday.

Decliners bested advancers, 111 versus 92, while 46 names were unchanged.

Net foreign selling surged to PHP 1 billion on Wednesday from PHP 604.51 million on Tuesday. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave