PSEi closes above 6,500

MANILA, Philippines - The bellwether stock index charged past the 6,500 territory yesterday, recording its 16th all-time high this year, as local investors continue to bank on the country’s strong macroeconomic fundamentals.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi), the gauge of the local bourse’s performance, climbed 1.05 percent or 68.06 points to end at 6,527.99, eclipsing the previous record of 6,470.49 on Feb. 5.

During the trading day, the main index also posted an intraday record peak at 6,531.79.

Joseph Y. Roxas, president of Eagle Equities Inc., said investors from Hong Kong and Singapore are picking stocks anew following the Chinese New Year holiday.

“There may also be other investors aside from those in Hong Kong and Singapore. Domestic investors are still very active,” Roxas said in a phone interview.

With the Philippine Economic Briefing of economic managers yesterday, Roxas said investors secured assurance that growth will continue this year due to higher consumer demand and election spending.

Overseas, Wall rose anew on Tuesday ahead of the State of the Union adrress of US President Barack Obama.

The Dow Jones Industrial average inched up 0.3 percent or 47.46 points to 14,018.70, its highest level so far this year, while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained 0.2 percent or 2.42 points to 1,519.43.

In the local bourse, all sub-indices were in the green, led by property firms that rallied 2.36 percent or 61.17 points to 2,649.68. Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) jumped 4.58 percent while Megaworld Corp. gained 3.86 percent, with both companies benefiting from the property boom.

Advancers outpaced decliners, 112 to 52, while prices of 50 stocks did not change.

Investor participation strengthened following the Lunar New Year holiday. Value of shares traded rose to P8.28 billion from P4.97 billion on Tuesday, snapping a five-day slide in turnover value.

Roxas said the main index is poised to climb anew in the next trading days given the strong economic growth.

Meanwhile, the PSE said yesterday it will enhance its online disclosure system.

“The enhanced features of the online disclosure system will help hasten the distribution of information to the public and, in the long run, rationalize the regulatory requirements for listed companies,” said PSE president and CEO Hans B. Sicat.