PSE Index Surges Anew As Foreign Buying Hits Record Levels

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index surged higher Monday, closing at 6,889.87 points, up by 42.50 points or 0.62%, marking a significant step towards the 7,000-point level.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Index, August 19, 2024

The index reached a high of 6,943.53 points during the session, driven by robust foreign buying, before settling down due to profit-taking, especially in the industrial and holding firms sub-indices.

SM Investments, a key market player, saw its stock price decline by PHP5.50 to PHP925, after peaking at PHP943.

ACEN Corp also experienced a loss of 17 centavos, closing at PHP5.64 after reaching a session high of PHP5.91. The industrial and holding firms sub-indices ended the session down by 0.50% and 0.15%, respectively.

Foreign buying reached its highest level in over six months, with total foreign trades amounting to PHP7.6 billion, nearly matching the overall value turnover of PHP7.615 billion.

Net foreign buying was recorded at PHP1.405 billion, with foreign purchases totaling PHP4.52 billion against foreign sales of PHP3.12 billion. Despite profit-taking, the index was buoyed by gains in other sectors.

Financials led the charge with a 1.41% increase, followed by mining and oil with a 1.42% gain, property up by 1.55%, and services rising by 0.58%.

Ayala Land emerged as the most active stock, with trades amounting to PHP1.71 billion, closing 3.63% higher at PHP34.30. SM Prime also posted a gain of 15 centavos, closing at PHP30.65.

The session saw 94 gainers, 104 losers, and 54 unchanged issues. Notable gainers included ICTSI, BDO Unibank, Metrobank, Universal Robina, Bank of PI, and several mining companies such as Apex Mining and Philex Mining.

Among the losers were Jollibee Foods, China Bank, Aboitiz Power, and Meralco. Companies that remained unchanged included Petron, Axelum, Figaro Coffee, and Dito CME.