The stock market rose Tuesday in heavy trading, tracking another record Wall Street close and ignoring soaring daily COVID-19 cases in the country.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index gained 68.82 points, or 1 percent, to 6,855.44 on a value turnover of P14.8 billion. Losers, however, outnumbered gainers, 120 to 65, with 55 issues unchanged.
Aboitiz Power Corp. of the Aboitiz Group advanced 6.9 percent to P28, while International Container Terminal Services Inc. of tycoon Enrique Razon Jr., the biggest port operator, increased 4.6 percent to P186.10.
Universal Robina Corp. of the Gokongwei Group, the largest snack maker, climbed 4.4 percent to P150.80, while SM Investments Corp. of the Sy Group rose 3.5 percent to P1,009.
The rest of Asian Mmarkets rose in Asia on Tuesday, as investors overcame early selling pressure sparked by data indicating China’s economic recovery had been slowed down by an outbreak of the fast-spreading Delta COVID variant.
The positive energy stoked by a pledge from Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell to be cautious in withdrawing the bank’s vast financial support appeared to have dissipated at the open, replaced by fresh concerns over Beijing’s crackdown on private enterprises and the ever-present specter of the coronavirus.
Tokyo and Seoul rose more than one percent, while Shanghai, Sydney, Wellington, Taipei, Mumbai and Bangkok were also well up.
Hong Kong also reversed heavy morning selling after China announced rules allowing under-18s to only play their computer games for three hours a week, saying it wanted to curb what it called an addiction.
The day got off to a weak start after China released figures showing activity in the services industry contracted last month for the first time since February 2020.
Authorities imposed strict travel restrictions on swathes of the country this month to contain its worst outbreak of COVID since the initial pandemic with dozens of cities affected and tens of millions of people subject to containment measures.
The moves saw flights cancelled and tourist spots closed while events were called off in a bid to nip the flare-up in the bud.
The “data again reflected the outsized and asymmetric shock on the service sector from COVID-related restrictions,” Liu Peiqian, at Natwest Markets, said.
And while new case figures have been brought under control again, Liu warned any such spike in future will again likely hit the services sector.
Several other countries—including Australia and New Zealand—have been forced to impose tough measures to battle a surge in infections while also struggling with their vaccine rollouts.
Analysts said US Treasury yields remained subdued—indicating higher demand for the safe-haven assets—owing to lingering concerns over the impact of Delta on the recovery.
“The bond market is getting a little nervous about the economic outlook,” Priya Misra, at TD Securities, told Bloomberg Television.
But she added: “I actually think the economy is fundamentally strong. By year end, if the economy holds up, which we forecast it will, that’s when we expect rates—especially in the long end—to start to edge higher.” With AFP
