The Philippine stock market rebounded Thursday on bargain hunting, as most stocks have reached oversold levels after five consecutive days of decline.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index closed at 6,106.92, up 23.99 points, or 0.39 percent. The broader all shares index finished at 3,677.92, up 14.30 points, or 0.39 percent.
The peso also closed stronger at 56.98 to the U.S. dollar, from 57.3 on Wednesday.
“The local market saw a technical bounce this Thursday backed by bargain hunting after five straight days of decline,” said Japhet Tantiangco, research head for Philstocks Financial Inc.
While the market bounced back Thursday, overall sentiment remains negative due to disappointing second-quarter financial results, risk-off sentiment, and a lack of catalysts.
All sectors ended in positive territory, with mining and oil and property taking the lead, both up by 1.08 percent.
Tantiangco said trading remained lethargic, with value turnover reaching P4.74 billion.
“This reflects weak confidence toward the market amid lingering headwinds,” he said.
Foreign investors were net sellers, with outflows at P237.92 million.
ACEN Corp. was the day’s top gainer, advancing 4.59 percent to P2.28, while Universal Robina Corp. was at the bottom, declining 4.16 percent to to P77.10.
Asian stock markets diverged on Thursday, with Tokyo and Seoul tracking gains made the previous day on Wall Street even as a selloff of Chinese equities intensified.
August was a blockbuster month for Chinese stocks, fueled by surging shares in semiconductor firms including Cambricon—but the sustained rally has stalled this week.
Shanghai’s benchmark index closed the day down 1.3 percent, dragged by a slide of more than 14 percent in Cambricon’s stock price.
Hong Kong finished down 1.1 percent.
Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney and Taipei all closed the day higher, following gains made on Wall Street Wednesday.
But shares in Japanese motor maker Nidec tumbled 22 percent after it launched a probe into “improper accounting” at its Chinese subsidiary.
The mixed day in Asia comes after European and US equities rose Wednesday as a global bond selloff eased, with shares in Google parent Alphabet jumping on the heels of a favorable court ruling.
Thursday morning trading in Europe saw Frankfurt and London benchmarks tick up. Paris was slightly down.
Gold reached a new high this week as investors continued to worry over mounting government debt. Japanese bond yields also hit a new record.
A soft US labour market report Wednesday showing a decline in job openings helped lift investor confidence the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.
“The dollar, naturally, buckled under the weight of weaker jobs and lower rates, and increased Fed cut bets, handing Asia an early boost,” wrote Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management, in a note.
“When the US dollar slides, Asian assets instantly look more attractive in currency-adjusted terms, and regional equities should snap to life after a sluggish start to September.”
Investors in Japan reacted Wednesday to concerns that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba might soon be forced to step down after the number two in his ruling Liberal Democratic Party offered to quit on Tuesday over July’s disastrous upper house election.
Easing market worries on Thursday, a closely watched auction of 30-year Japanese government bonds passed without incident as demand was largely consistent with recent levels.
Also weighing on investors’ minds is the decision by a US judge to refrain from requiring Google to sell its Chrome web browser in a closely watched antitrust case.
Shares in Google parent Alphabet rose around nine percent on Wednesday, while Apple — whose lucrative deal to make Google search the default on iPhones was also spared in the court ruling — rose nearly four percent.
“Taken together, the rulings were read as a sign that US courts may remain friendlier to tech giants than feared under the Trump administration,” wrote Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.
Oil prices continued to drop Thursday amid anticipation of excess supply in the coming months as OPEC+ nations are expected to further unwind production cuts. With AFP
