Bourse returns to 8,000 level
Credit to Author: ANGELICA BALLESTEROS, TMT| Date: Thu, 02 May 2019 16:22:54 +0000
THE stock market climbed back to the 8,000 level on Thursday after investors reportedly cheered S&P Global Ratings’ move to upgrade the Philippines’ credit rating.
The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose by 0.61 percent or 48.85 points to finish at 8,001.57. The wider All Shares, meanwhile, grew 0.48 percent or 23.33 points to end at 4,912.89.
“The spotlight focused on the Philippine market as the country got a boost from its credit rating courtesy of S&P,” Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales Luis Limlingan said.
In a statement on Tuesday, the debt watcher upgraded the country’s credit rating to “BBB+” from “BBB,” said to be a reflection of strong economic growth trajectory that it expected “to continue to drive constructive development outcomes and underpin broader credit metrics over the medium term.”
The upgrade, S&P added, was supported by the solid government fiscal accounts, low public indebtedness and the economy’s sound external settings.
It underscored, however, the importance of infrastructure development to sustain the Philippine economy’s expansion.
Limlingan said the decision of the US Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committeeto keep interest rates unchanged helped buoy market sentiment.
The local market traded amid a decline on Wall Street and mixed trading in the region.
The Dow Jones dropped 0.61 percent, the S&P 500 declined 0.75 percent, and Nasdaq decreased 0.57 percent.
In the region, Jakarta dropped 1.37 percent and Singapore slipped 0.37 percent. Hong Kong grew 0.83 percent, Seoul rose 0.42 percent, and Bangkok increased 0.43 percent.
In Manila, only mining and oil and property finished in the red, down 0.15 percent and 0.25 percent, respectively.
More than 746 million issues valued at P8.17 billion changed hands.
Winners led losers, 109 to 81, while 52 issues were unchanged.
The post Bourse returns to 8,000 level appeared first on The Manila Times Online.