Philippines stocks rise as positive mood flows

MANILA, Philippines — The local stock market continued its rally for the third straight day as investor sentiment was boosted by favorable trade and unemployment data.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) finished at 6,155.03, up by 23.71 points or 0.39 percent while the broader All Shares index gained 7.17 points or 0.22 percent.

The sectoral gauges were mixed with industrial, property and financials finishing in the green while mining snd  oil, holding firms and services closed in the red.

Total value turnover reached P3.8 billion. Market breadth was positive, with 90 advancers versus 75 decliners, and 50 issues were unchanged.

Claire Alviar of Philstocks Financials said the market’s ascent followed the positive cues from the US amid the decline in the US long-term treasury yields.

“At home, the sentiment was also boosted by the labor data with the unemployment rate in September remaining strong at 4.5 percent despite a slight dip from the previous month. The narrower trade deficit also contributed to the positive sentiment, though a 6.3 percent year-on-year contraction in exports tempered some of the optimism,” she said.

Asian shares mostly declined in muted trading yesterday as attention focused on prospects for improved China-US relations from meetings next week on the sidelines of a Pacific Rim summit.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum meetings in San Francisco offer an opportunity for top leaders from the US and China to mend troubled trade and political ties.

Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping are due to meet then, and White House officials expect to make some modest announcements as part of the tete-a-tete, but fundamental differences in the relationship will remain unchanged.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is set to meet Thursday and Friday with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in San Francisco before finance ministers of the APEC member nations officially kick off the summit Saturday.

Moody’s Investors Service affirmed the Government of Japan’s A1 long-term foreign currency and local currency issuer and local currency senior unsecured ratings. The outlook was maintained at stable.

The main worries for Japan were its “structural weaknesses,” such as its aging population, according to Moody’s.