PSE INDEX IN MUTED RISE

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index today had a muted rise with modest value turnover as the market digests the emerging markets trends hamstrung by the expectations of an inflation uptick and challenged business environment to post a 51.18 - point or 0.80 percent up to 6,446.35 points.

Value turnover was low at P5.043 billion with net foreign selling amounting to P690 million. But the market may be pricing out the Coronavirus surge already as it opened low but manage to squeak past negative territory to close at its high point for the day.

Ayala Corp was the day's most active at just P308 million of which P113 million were foreign selling in trades as it lost P10 to close at P725, but market bellwether SM Investments managed to gain P2 to P963, even with foreign selling of P187 million out of its total trades of P286 million.

Food giant Jollibee Foods rose by P5.10 or 2.90 percent to P181, while Metro Pacific was unchanged at P3.78.

Gainers were ahead of losers, 125 to 76 with 52 shares unchanged as the property sub-sector posted the biggest gain of 1.80 percent, with Ayala Land and SM Prime posting rises of 50 centavos to P34.30 and 80 centavos to P34.75 respectively.

BDO Unibank, Metrobank, and Bank of PI gained too to push the financials by 1.18 percent. BDO was up P1.60 to P105, Metrobank by 65 centavos to P46.20 and BPI by P1.30 to P83.40.

Converge had the biggest foreign buying at P29 million as it went up by 4 centavos to P19.04, while second liners Apollo Global and Premiere Horizon rose respectively by P0.019 to P0.197 and 6 centavos to P2.03.

PLDT was up by P6 to P1,226 while Universal Robina lost P3 to P122.

Tomorrow is a much anticipated day with the listing of DD REIT and investors are awaiting how will the market welcome the IPO which was postponed due to the number of investors who bought what DD boss Edgar Injap Sia regarded as a "pamana" stock.

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