Stocks rise anew on Wall St gains

MANILA, Philippines - The bellwether index gained for the second straight day, closer to the 6,600 level as local stocks mirrored the run-up on Wall St.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) climbed 0.82 percent or 53.75 points to end at 6,597.21, while the broader All Shares index picked up 0.39 percent or 15.64 points to 3,977.43.

“The PSEi inched higher off the opening bell, in a slow, grinding climb on relatively light volume,” said Justino Calaycay Jr., analyst at Accord Capital Equities Corp.

He said the slow climb of the local bourse raised impatience for some investors that expected a bigger uptick after US equities surged.

On Tuesday, Wall St. posted gains at the start of the two-day policy meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, with investors hoping that the tapering of the stimulus program will be delayed to early next year.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed 0.7 percent or 111.42 points higher at 15,680.35 while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.6 percent or 9.84 points to a record 1,771.95.

Asian shares also benefited from the positive news in developed markets. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.23 percent or 176.37 points to 14,502.35, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 1.81 percent or 413.46 points to 23,260.

Locally, all counters were in the green, save for mining and oil that fell 0.51 percent or 66.35 points to 12,827.06. The advancers were led by property firms that rallied 1.98 percent or 51.48 points to 2,651.48.