Phl stocks extend rally on US market recovery

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The Philippine stock market extended its rally today following the recovery in the US equities.

The bellwether Philippine stock market was up by 0.40 percent or 24.12 points to 5,982.24, while the broader all-share index rose by 0.38 percent or 13.83 points to 3,649.40.

Trading volume reached 606 million shares worth P5.53 billion ($122.73 million) with 93 stocks advancing, 61 issues declining, and 45 were unchanged.

Of the six counters, only the mining and oil sector and the property subindex bucked the trend.

"The market extended yesterday's gains as investors showed some signs of optimism as US stocks recovered from a prior session's slump," analyst Justino Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp. said in his daily stock market analysis.

The analyst said bourses in the region teetered between gains and losses as participants sought a balance between current and expected valuations.

It also helped that there are developments among local companies, providing impetus for investors to buy even if it is just the favored issues.

"The composite index once more narrowed the distance from the near-term but there seems to be a strong resistance to the 6,000 level," Calaycay said.

The analyst, however, warned that now that the stock valuations in the Philippine market have again climbed back to the 18x level, this development might creep back into investors' consciousness in the coming sessions.

"In fact, this could be one of the main reasons the market has been unable to pierce the resistance line. Much will depend on the next earnings cycle whence the market will seek justification to make a sustained break of the line," Calaycay said.

Stocks in the 30-company index closed mixed. Investors mostly placed their bets on Ayala Corp. and heavyweight Philippine Long Distance Telehpone Co.