Thursday, March 22, 2007
Philippine shares surge 2.8 percent on Wall Street rally (2 p.m.)
MANILA -- Philippine shares jumped Thursday, lifted by overnight gains on Wall Street on expectations the Federal Reserve will start easing monetary policy.
The 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index surged 87.85 points, or 2.8 percent, to 3,178.32, adding to Wednesday's 1.7
percent gain.
Jose Vistan, research head at AB Capital Securities, said the decision by the Fed to keep interest rates unchanged augurs well for
low local interest rates and, consequently, for investor appetite
for equities.
"But there is still caution in the market, especially as we get closer to the Easter break and the elections in May," said Vistan.
"The market's fundamentals are intact," said Wealth Securities analyst Ricardo Puig. "Sentiment, however, was hurt by risk aversion, so news like the rally on Wall Street always helps."
Leading advancers was Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., which took its cue from the 3.4 percent rise in the price of its American depositary receipts in New York. PLDT gained 5.6 percent to close at 2,525 pesos.
Other gainers were property developers Megaworld Corp., which rose 6.7 percent to 3.20 pesos, and Ayala Land Inc., which gained 1.6 percent to 15.75 pesos. (AP) |
