Index surges on strong Wall St gains

MANILA, Philippines - Strong gains in Wall Street amid easing tensions in Ukraine rubbed off on local equities, pushing the main index past the 6,900 level anew.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose 1.11 percent or 76.32 points to 6,956.66, while the broader all shares index added 0.84 percent or 34.58 points to 4,163.68.

“Following a wild but so-so week, investors found some cheer in Friday’s 185-point rally in Dow Jones, reason enough to push on the buy bottom and send the PSEi past the 6,900 line and yet another test of the 7,000 mark,” said Justino Calaycay Jr. of Accord Capital Equities Corp.

“The Philippine market rebounded as we tracked foreign market rebounds last Friday as geopolitical tension in Ukraine, which was a catalyst in the market decline, eased,” said Gab Aguila of DA Market Securities.

On Friday, Wall Street jumped after reports that Russia is ending its military exercises near the Ukraine’s border.

The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 1.13 percent or 182.66 points to 16,553.93, while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed 1.14 percent or 21.84 points higher at 1,931.41.

Closer to home, Asian stocks cheered the development in Wall Street. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rallied 2.38 percent or 352.15 points to 15,130.52.

Locally, all counters closed in the green, led by the service sector that gained 1.59 percent or 33.13 points to 2,120.52.

Turnover value reached P9.89 billion, higher than the P7.16 billion on Friday. Advancers outplayed decliners, 104 to 73, while 46 stocks did not change.