By the closing bell, the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index had gained 1.19 percent to 6,077.82—a 1.9 percent downward swing from the intraday high of 6,197.72. So far, experts are approaching the market cautiously, wary that this could just be a technical bounce from the global market crash last Monday.
“The benchmark index opened strongly in the morning, but some of those gains melted away over the trading session as investors took profits and trimmed positions to hedge against the escalating trade war between the US and China,” said Juan Paolo Colet, managing director at China Bank Capital.
Stocks followed Wall Street’s overnight surge after US President Donald Trump paused most of their global tariffs.
“The market closed higher on the back of a relief rally in reaction to Trump’s decision to temporarily pause most reciprocal tariffs, including those on the Philippines,” Colet explained.
Expected rate cut materializes
Stocks were also supported by bets that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) would cut the policy rate, he added.
Indeed, the BSP cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 5.5 percent on Thursday, as it revised inflation forecasts downward and cited balanced inflation risks alongside softer growth prospects.
Large-cap stocks ended mixed, with SM Investments jumping 6.67 percent to P800, followed by BDO Unibank Inc. (-2.34 percent to P154.30), International Container Terminal Services (-2.3 percent to P340), Bank of the Philippine Islands (+1.14 percent to P133), and Ayala Land Inc., up 2.22 percent to P23 per share.
A total of P13.3 billion worth of stocks changed hands while foreigners posted net sales of P110.26 million.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
