Index rises on selective buying

MANILA, Philippines - The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) closed higher yesterday as advancers dominated yesterday’s session, analysts said.

“The market is now looking forward to the release of the US economic performance this week,” said Paolo Hizon of Unicapital Securities Inc.

The PSEi rose 43.27 points to settle at 6,910.34.

The broader All Shares index fell below the 4,000-mark, declining 11.44 points or 0.29 percent to finish at 3,952.32.

All other indexes closed in positive territory except for the services and mining and oil index which declined 4.94 percent and 6.84 percent, respectively.

“After the US Fed and a handful of data from some major economies, the only question left is whether ‘Santa Claus is coming to town.’ Recent history draws a favorable picture. Suffice to say that over the last eight years, the ‘Santa Claus rally’ has given investors an average return of +1.56 percent, ranging from losses of -1.61 percent to as much as 3.54 percent (2010),” said Justino Calaycay of Philstocks Financial Inc.