Local shares rally, shrug off China volatility

MANILA, Philippines — Local shares rallied on Monday, shrugging of market volatility as protests erupted across China as residents sounded of calls for greater political freedom and an end to strict pandemic curbs. 

The Philippine Stock Exchange index surged 1.13% to close at 6,681.47. The broader All Shares index inched up 0.83%, with most of the sub-indices landing in the green as well. Stocks in the services index gained a whopping 3.14% to start the week. 

Hernan Segovia, trader at Summit Securities, said the local bourse was able to maintain momentum from Friday’s activities. 

“PSEi was spectacularly up today despite regional markets being weak lead by China. We managed to mimic last Friday's close as momentum did a follow through,” he said. 

“Technically the PSE index filled its gap at 6,666 (ewww) and is on a head collision with its  50-week moving average at 6,681,” Segovia added.

Luis Limlingan, head of sales at local brokerage Regina Capital, agreed with Segovia’s assessment. 

“Philippine shares close higher as the market continues to test previous resistance as the economic data remains encouraging,” he said in a Viber message. 

Data, including statements from US Federal Reserve hinting softer rate hikes, loomed large for investors. 

The latest purchasing managers’ index data is set to be released within the Philippines this week. 

Regional equities were not so fortunate. There were also losses in Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Jakarta, Bangkok and Wellington.

China-linked stocks took the brunt of selling, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index down 1.8 percent and Shanghai off 0.8 percent. The yuan slipped more than one percent.

Foreign investors bought P914 million more shares than they sold in the local stock market. A total of million 729.87 million stocks, valued at P8.68 billion, switched hands on Monday.  — with AFP