PSEi up after strong manufacturing data, Wall St.

Philippine shares climbed on Monday amid strong manufacturing activity data, Wall Street’s rise, and expectations of slower inflation last month.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) went up by 39.19 points or 0.62% to close at 6,284.37 on Monday, while the broader all shares index rose by 15.22 points or 0.45% to end at 3,347.44.

“The local bourse gained… thanks to the strong S&P Global Philippines Manufacturing PMI (purchasing managers’ index) [data],” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Analyst Claire T. Alviar said in a Viber message.

The S&P Global Philippines Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 52.7 in November from 52.4 in October amid robust demand and growth in new orders and production, a report released on Friday showed.

A PMI reading above the 50 mark denotes better operating conditions, while a reading below 50 signals deterioration.

“Moreover, hopes that the Philippine inflation last month would slow down helped lift the sentiment. However, many were still seen on the sidelines as they wait for the release of the inflation rate,” she added.

Value turnover fell to PHP 3.77 billion on Monday with 446.56 million shares changing hands from the PHP 4.41 billion with 1.68 billion issues traded on Friday.

Meanwhile, a BusinessWorld poll of 15 analysts yielded a median estimate of 4.4% for November headline inflation, at the midpoint of the 4-4.8% forecast of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for the month.

If realized, the November consumer price index (CPI) would be slower than the 4.9% print in October and the 8% logged in the same month last year. However, November would mark the 20^th straight month that inflation exceeded BSP’s 2-4% annual target.

November CPI data will be released on Tuesday.

Shares increased due to the “positive sentiment spillover” from US markets’ rally on Friday, China Bank Securities Corp. Research Associate Lance U. Soledad said in an e-mail.

“Moreover, we think that prospects of a continued easing in local inflation further boosted risk-on appetite,” he added.

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 294.61 points or 0.82% to 36,245.50; the S&P 500 gained 26.83 points or 0.59% to 4,594.63; and the Nasdaq Composite added 78.81 points or 0.55% to 14,305.03, Reuters reported.

At home, all sectoral indices rose on Monday. Mining and oil increased by 219.87 points or 2.28% to 9,853.38; industrials went up by 84.89 points or 0.97% to 8,831.16; financials jumped by 16.37 points or 0.94% to 1,751.78; holding firms advanced by 30.85 points or 0.52% to 5,949.05; services climbed by 3.65 points or 0.24% to 1,523.86; and property rose by 5.67 points or 0.2% to 2,751.52.

Decliners outnumbered advancers, 91 versus 83, while 46 names closed unchanged.

Net foreign buying declined to PHP 287.54 million on Monday from PHP 1.38 billion on Friday. — S.J. Talavera with Reuters