Stocks rallied for the second straight day Tuesday as better than expected Chinese trade data suggested a rebound from the economic devastation wrought by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index jumped 169.90 points, or 3 percent, to 5,780.88 on a value turnover of P7.4 billion. Gainers overwhelmed losers, 158 to 53, with 32 issues unchanged.
Jollibee Foods Corp., the biggest fast-food chain, surged 8.5 percent to P146.50, while conglomerate Ayala Corp. advanced 8.3 percent to P550.
International Container Terminal Services Inc., the largest port operator and owned by tycoon Enrique Razon Jr., climbed 8.2 percent to P80.90, while GT Capital Holdings Inc. of the Ty Group rose 7.5 percent to P430.
The rest of Asian markets posted gains.
China has largely brought the disease under control within its borders since the COVID-19 outbreak first emerged in the city of Wuhan late last year.
But it came at the cost of drastic measures that shuttered much of the economy and cordoned off tens of millions of people at the epicenter of the outbreak.
With much of the country returning to work and travel restrictions eased across industrial hub Wuhan, Tuesday’s data beat market expectations.
Exports fell 6.6 percent and imports dropped 0.9 percent in March on a yearly basis, according to Customs figures—falls that were well below the 10 percent or more forecast by a Bloomberg survey of economists.
But Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics warned “the worst is still to come” for China’s export businesses, with more economic headwinds likely in the months ahead as the world battles the coronavirus outbreak.
Investors will now await the release of quarterly GDP figures on Friday, with forecasters predicting a 6.2 percent contraction.
Regional bourses had already moved into positive territory before the results were announced.
Tokyo was up 1.9 percent, Shanghai climbed 0.7 percent and Hong Kong returned from a four day break to rise 0.6 percent in morning trade.
Sydney was up 1.0 percent despite the forecast doubling of Australia’s unemployment rate to 10 percent in the second quarter and a National Australia Bank survey showing record low business confidence.
The Australian dollar has also rallied from last month’s 18-year lows with a slowdown in new coronavirus infections and signs of returning industrial activity in China, said AxiCorp chief market strategist Stephen Innes.
“The combination of early containment and quality health care system put Australia head and shoulders above many,” he added.
Investors shook off a negative lead from Wall Street overnight ahead of earnings reports from major US banks.
That data will be among the first to show the effects of the near-overnight economic shutdown in the country worst affected by the pandemic.
Nearly 600,000 people have tested positive for the disease and more than 23,500 have died across the US.
Some market watchers say the US economy could bounce back relatively quickly once the coronavirus situation is managed, but others warn of a more protracted slowdown due to the risk of second-wave outbreaks. With AFP