Last-minute buying buoys share prices

MANILA, Philippines — The stock market managed to pull off an afternoon rally yesterday as investors engaged on last-minute buying, traders said.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 27.97 points, or 0.32 percent, to finish at 8,598.11, while the broader All Shares index added 19.59 points, or 0.38 percent, to settle at 5,072.80.

Local stocks were heading downwards early in the trading day and closed the morning session covered in red amid gains in the US.

The market, however, recovered in the afternoon as investors factored in the uptrend in some Asian markets, traders said.

“Philippines and US stocks eked small gains, but were still showing signs of renewed intraday turbulence, as markets struggled to comprehend a new set of volatilities, ahead of key inflation data and doubts that last week’s brutal selling will be short-lived,” Regina Capital Development Corp. business development head Luis Limlingan said.

All local indices closed on a positive note except for industrial firms which posted a slight drop.

The property counters recorded the largest gain of 1.23 percent, followed by mining and oil and services counters with increases of 0.88 percent and 0.72 percent, respectively.