MANILA - Philippine share prices on Wednesday stretched their winning streak to a fourth session as investors cheered further signs of easing tension over Syria.
At the Philippine Stock Exchange, the benchmark index was up 125.18 points, or 2.06 percent, to close at 6,214.90. All sectors finished in the green with the property counter leading the charge with a gain of 3.25 percent.
Advancers beat decliners, 94 to 47, while 41 issues were unchanged. A total of 906.84 million stocks worth P9.22 billion changed hands.
Most actively traded stocks were PLDT, Ayala Land, SM Investments, Universal Robina and SM Prime. Top gainers were Vitarich, IMI and iRipple, while the biggest losers were MJCI, 2GO and United Paragon.
"Obama's statement was a big boost to the market. It seems that a diplomatic solution is in the offing which helped calmed nerves of the investors," said Astro del Castillo, managing director at First Grade Finance Inc.
In a televised address on Tuesday night, US President Barack Obama asked Congress to delay a vote on the use of force against Syria as the White House and its allies pursue a diplomatic resolution that would require Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to surrender the chemical weapons.
Overnight, the Dow Jones industrial Average rallied 127.94 points, or 0.9 percent, to 15,191.06.
The prospect of a US-led military strike against Syria has been weighing on the market in the past several weeks.
"This, and improving economic data across the globe, they’re bringing back the confidence of most investors. We're in the last leg of the year so you're seeing more positioning," said del Castillo.
Adding to the euphoria were reassuring economic data that saw China's industrial output and retail sales topping forecasts. Stocks rallied at the start of the week after China reported better-than-expected exports data, adding to signs of the resiliency of the world's second biggest economy.
Fears that the US Federal Reserve may start tapering its stimulus program have been pushed on the sidelines this week.
"The market has digested that news and if the Fed actually reduces its stimulus, the reaction will not be as worse as what we saw in the previous months," said del Castillo.
The Fed will hold its policy meeting on September 17-18 and is expected to provide direction on the future of its economic stimulus. The US central bank's $85-billion bond-buying program – the third tranche of what has come to be called “quantitative easing” (QE3) – has been a key driver of equities rallies in the past several months.
source: interaksyon.com
