Share prices surge on regional rally

MANILA, Philippines - The local stock market joined regional equities in a rebound yesterday, ending the slump that extended through Thursday, which pushed the index near the 6,000 mark.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rebounded 123.77 points to close at 6,208.05, while the broader All Shares index gained 58.34 points, or 1.66 percent, to finish at 3,577.92.

All other indexes closed in positive territory, with the industrial index recording the biggest gain as it rose 168.04 points or 1.68 percent to close at 10,190.89.

Total value turnover amounted to P6.167 billion as advancers outnumbered decliners 104 to 60 and left 40 stocks unchanged.

Analysts said the local equities market joined other Asian markets, which recovered from four-year lows on the possibility of more monetary policy support by the European central bank and a rally in crude oil prices from 12-year lows.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged 5.9 percent to close at 16,958.53.

This was a marked improvement after hitting at 15-month low the previous day.

Likewise, markets in China also managed to recover losses incurred the past weeks, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite gaining 0.8 percent to 2,901.32 points, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 2.2 percent to 18,950.19 points.

For instance, the US crude was 85 cents higher at $30.38 a barrel while Brent crude rose 98 cents at $30.23 a barrel.

The ECB managed to contain some of the pessimism for the time being after ECB President Mario Draghi hinted strongly on Thursday that more easing could be coming within months.