PSE Index In Muted Recovery

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index posted a modest rise Monday in a muted recovery that market analysts say does not bode well for the market, despite five sub-indices closing higher.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Index, February 3, 2025

The index ended at 5,883.04 points, up by 20.45 points or 0.35 percent.

The closing index was the lowest point of the day as investors engaged in profit-taking. Earlier, the index had briefly approached the 6,000-point level, reaching an intraday high of 5,994.04 points before retreating.

Except for the property sector, which rose by 1.79 percent, all other gainers posted increases of less than one percent, reflecting continued uncertainty in the market. The services sector declined by 0.95 percent, weighed down by ICTSI, which fell 2.57 percent to ₱341, down by ₱9.

The financial sector edged up by 0.36 percent, industrials gained 0.67 percent, mining and oil advanced by 0.41 percent, and holding firms rose by just 0.11 percent, held back by the decline in market bellwether SM Investments, which dropped ₱11 or 1.41 percent to ₱769.

Foreign investors were net buyers, with net purchases amounting to ₱695 million. Foreign buying totaled ₱4.69 billion, while foreign selling reached ₱3.99 billion. Total value turnover stood at ₱11.3 billion, with foreign trades accounting for ₱8.6 billion.

Market analysts noted the weakness in the recovery of stocks that were heavily sold off last Friday.

Notable gainers included Alliance Global, which surged 15 percent to ₱6.90; Century Pacific Food, up 10.5 percent to ₱40.50; Ayala Land, which rose 7.62 percent to ₱24; and San Miguel, which climbed 10.43 percent to ₱72—recovering only a third of its losses from January 31.

There were 131 decliners against 81 gainers, with 30 stocks unchanged. China Bank was the most actively traded stock, with ₱1.8 billion in transactions, though it remained unchanged.

The other stocks that ended the day up were Nickel Asia, Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), OceanaGold, Apex Mining, Citicore REIT, Semirara Mining, Jollibee Foods, Monde Nissin, Ayala Corporation, GT Capital, Puregold, SM Prime, ABS-CBN, GMA-7, Converge, PAL Holdings, Belle Corporation, Bloomberry, Cebu Landmasters, ACEN Corporation, Union Bank, and LT Group.

Meanwhile, in the red were BDO Unibank, Wilcon Depot, AREIT, Universal Robina, First Gen, Figaro Coffee, Alternergy, Aboitiz Power, Vitarich, CEMEX Holdings, SPNEC, Shell Pilipinas, Megaworld, Robinsons Land, AbaCore, Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Cebu Air, Cosco Capital, Vista Land, VistaREIT, Manila Water, Synergy Grid, Atlas Mining, and Philex Mining.

D&L Industries, Ginebra, Megawide, DoubleDragon, Globe Telecom, Dito CME, Haus Talk, and Boulevard Holdings were unchanged.