PSE’s extended trading hours take effect Feb. 20

The extended trading hours of the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) will take effect on Wednesday, Feb. 20, after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) en banc approved the proposal last Wednesday.

In a memorandum, PSE senior vice president Jose Cervantes said based on the new trading schedule, there will be a one-hour market recess from 12 noon to 1 p.m. before trading resumes for an additional one and half hours, or until 2:30 p.m.

During the one-hour break, however, Cervantes said all trading activities i.e, posting, modifications and cancellations of orders and deals will not be allowed by the Maktrade computer trading systems.

"Both trading floors will be open in the afternoon sessions for brokers who wish to conduct their business at the trading floor," he said.

With the new closing time, the 10-minute run-off period will be adjusted to 2:20 to 2:30 p.m., instead of the original 12:00 to 12:10 p.m. The run-off period only allows traders to complete all deals entered during the regular trading hours, but not to take in new orders.

Jose Aquino, director of the SEC’s Market Regulation Department, said the approval by the commission en banc was consistent with the requirements of the Securities Regulation Code and its implementing rules and regulations and being of the view that the extension of trading hours will be to the benefit of the investors.

"We hope that the adoption of extended trading hours would indeed attract more investors and boost the volume of trades in the local equities market," Aquino said.

The PSE said the current upward trend of the market also supports the extension of the trading schedule with the expectation that it will encourage more market players to invest in the local market, create more trading business for the stockbrokers and afford market investors added facility for trading in the afternoon, which will align the PSE with other stock exchange in the rest of the world.