Bargain hunting, Wall Street rally lift PHL stocks

PHILIPPINE SHARES climbed on Thursday as investors continued to pick up bargains, although the mood stayed cautious as global markets awaited clarity on US President Donald J. Trump’s tariff plans.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index rose by 0.48% or 30.52 points to close at 6,378.86, while the broader all shares index went up by 0.18% or 6.81 points to end at 3,705.34.

“Bargain hunting continued, which in turn extended the local market’s gains. The positive cues from Wall Street’s overnight performance also helped in Thursday’s performance,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message.

“Trading was still anemic, however, with net value turnover at P3.96 billion as many investors stayed on the sidelines amid lingering uncertainties primarily on the US’ foreign trade policies,” Mr. Tantiangco said.

Value turnover went down to P4.09 billion on Thursday with 904.20 million shares changing hands from the P4.68 billion with 862.32 million issues traded on Wednesday.

“Philippine shares climbed following the sentiment of US stocks, which surged on Wednesday… Investors are also anticipating regulatory easing and corporate tax cuts under President Donald Trump’s new term, which could boost corporate profits,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

Wall Street’s indexes rose on Wednesday, with the benchmark S&P 500 hitting an intraday record high as investors cheered streaming video provider Netflix’s quarterly report and Mr. Trump’s private-sector artificial intelligence infrastructure investment plan, Reuters reported.

The S&P 500 ended up 37.13 points or 0.61% to 6,086.37. The Nasdaq Composite gained 252.56 points or 1.28% to 20,009.34, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 130.92 points or 0.30% to 44,156.73

Risk appetites have been boosted recently by strong economic data and cooling inflation along with Mr. Trump’s more moderate than feared approach to tariffs since his Monday inauguration.

However, investors are still cautiously watching for the president’s trade plans due to inflation concerns after he warned that tariffs on imports from China, Mexico, Canada and the European Union could be issued on Feb. 1.

At home, majority of sectoral indices closed higher on Thursday. Financials climbed by 1.13% or 24.78 points to 2,203.65; holding firms rose by 1% or 53.54 points to 5,389.99; mining and oil went up by 0.94% or 72.97 points to 7,793.40; and industrials increased by 0.17% or 15.46 points to 8,933.69.

Meanwhile, services fell by 0.8% or 16.85 points to 2,078.94 and property went down by 0.17% or 3.99 points to 2,332.04.

Decliners beat advancers, 107 versus 95, while 42 names were unchanged.

Net foreign selling declined to P163.58 million on Thursday from P404.25 million on Wednesday. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave with Reuters