PSE INDEX ENDS YEAR ON A POSITIVE NOTE

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index ended the year on a positive note, although a muted one, as the share prices of blue chips and especially of the second liners gyrated wildly before settling down with value turnover hitting P11.11 billion, with the index also in a slight uptick to 7,139.71 points, a gain of 17.46 points or 0.25 percent.

PSE's index swung from a high of 7.173.27 points to a low of 7,120.82 points, as market players cashed in their gains while others bought declining stocks in a trading performance that saw penny stocks in volatile trade resulting in the inclusion of four second liners into the day's most active stocks.

Dito was the day's most active with value turnover of P2.76 billion as players bought and sold the stock, upping its share price to P10.90, its new high for a gain of P1.09.

Ayala Energy was the second most active, a far cry at P460 million in trades, also rising by 98 centavos to P9.00.

Market bellwether SM Investments lost P1 to P1,049 as it fell on selling pressure from foreign investors with net foreign selling of P45 million.

Market darling MerryMart gyrated wildly between a low of P5.92 to a high of P6.47, settling at P6.18, up by 27 centavos.

Ayala Corp rose by P14 to P827 but Ayala Land lost 85 centavos to P40.90. PLDT was unchanged at P1,340 and Globe Telecom was down by 2 to P2,030.

There was net foreign buying of P88 million on foreign selling of P2.102 billion and foreign buying of P2.191 billion, with BDO Unibank topping the buys at P58 million, resulting in its gain of P2.30 to P106.80.

Among the penny stocks that were included in the most active stocks were Apollo Global, up by P0.003 to P0126 with P434 million in trade; Global Ferronickel up 12 centavos to P2.72 with P399 million; Abra Mining, down P0.0006 to P0.0029 with P301 million, and Premiere Horizon, up 10 centavos to P1.10 with P221 million.

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