PSEi ends higher on Fed, BSP policy easing hopes

The main index rose on Thursday as both the US Federal Reserve and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said they expect to resume their monetary easing cycles this year despite uncertainty stemming from the Trump administration’s trade policies.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose by 0.15% or 10.01 points to close at 6,323.13 on Thursday, while the broader all shares index slipped by 0.10% or 4.03 points to 3,745.32.

“The local market rose further on the back of the positive cues from Wall Street. This came as the Fed maintained its outlook of two policy rate cuts for this year,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message. “Hopes that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas will cut their policy rates at their April meeting also gave the market a boost.”

“Philippine shares made modest gains ahead of the FTSE rebalancing and after the Fed reaffirmed its outlook for two rate cuts in 2025, keeping rates at 4.25% to 4.5% despite expectations of higher inflation and slower growth. Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell downplayed the inflationary impact of tariffs, calling it transitory,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

Asia shares edged up on Thursday after a Wall Street rally as investor sentiment was lifted by the prospect that the Federal Reserve could still deliver two rate cuts this year, Reuters reported.

The Fed on Wednesday left rates unchanged in a widely expected decision, but maintained its projection for two quarter-percentage-point rate cuts by the year-end.

Meanwhile, BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona, Jr. told Bloomberg News on Wednesday that the Monetary Board could resume its easing cycle at their April 10 meeting following the surprise pause at their February review.

Mr. Remolona added that the BSP could deliver 50 basis points (bps) in cuts this year.

The Philippine central bank has brought down benchmark borrowing costs by a cumulative 75 bps since it began its easing cycle in August last year.

Most sectoral indices closed higher on Thursday. Mining and oil surged by 6.06% or 546.34 points to 9,548.32; property increased by 0.98% or 21.97 points to 2,261.97; industrials went up by 0.49% or 43.59 points to 8,832.88; services rose by 0.17% or 3.58 points to 2,057.36; and holding firms climbed by 0.13% or 7.04 points to 5,228.74.

Meanwhile, financials went down by 0.42% or 10.40 points to 2,440.62.

Value turnover went down to PHP 5.6 billion on Thursday with 1.06 billion shares exchanged from the PHP 7.84 billion with 966.38 million issues traded on Wednesday.

Advancers beat decliners, 103 against 98, while 44 names were unchanged.

Net foreign buying dropped to PHP 166.83 million on Thursday from PHP 392.22 million on Wednesday. — R.M.D. Ochave with Reuters