Index bucks gloomy foreign trend

MANILA, Philippines - Share prices managed to post slight gains for the second straight day yesterday, bucking the gloomy trend in global markets.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) added 0.11 percent or 7.22 points to settle at 6,857.48, while the broader all shares index rose 0.16 percent or 6.68 points to settle at 4,305.72.

“The market traded sideways as the main index retests the 6,850 level mimicking what happened last week,” Freya Natividad, investment analyst at brokerage firm 2Trade-Asia.com.

Natividad said the local market focused on select corporate news, allowing the benchmark index to eke out gains amid declines in overseas markets.

Stocks in Asia and Wall Street fell anew on the back of fears over slower global growth.

The Dow Jones Industrial average declined 0.9 percent or 138.19 points to 14,618.59 while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index retreated 1.4 percent or 22 points to 1,553 on weaker prices of technology, commodity, energy and bank stocks.

Locally, counters were mixed, with the advancers led by property firms that closed 0.56 percent or 15.42 points higher at 2,787.98 while the decliners were paced by mining and oil that dropped 0.78 percent or 162.70 points to 20,703.13.

Turnover value hit P11.35 billion compared with P49.05 billion on Wednesday that was boosted by the block sale of P37-billion worth of shares of LT Group Inc.Locally, counters were mixed, with the advancers led by property firms that closed 0.56 percent or 15.42 points higher at 2,787.98 while the decliners were paced by mining and oil that dropped 0.78 percent or 162.70 points to 20,703.13.

Turnover value hit P11.35 billion compared with P49.05 billion on Wednesday that was boosted by the block sale of P37-billion worth of shares of LT Group Inc.

Source: By Neil Jerome C. Morales (The Philippine Star) | Updated April 19, 2013 - 12:00am