MANILA – The local index finished the last day of trading for the week strong, while the peso barely moved.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) ended Friday gaining 0.70 percent at 7,252.32 points, with All Shares also closing higher by 0.62 percent at 3,895.62 level.
Except for Property, which declined by 0.70 percent, other sectoral indices closed in the green territory led by Financials which went up by 2.25 percent.
“The bourse which is already cheering the Federal Reserve’s recent 50 basis point policy rate cut received another boost as the BSP trimmed our banks’ reserve requirement ratios,” Philstock Financials research manager Japhet Tantiangco said.
“By augmenting liquidity, the move is seen to give the local economy a boost. The Peso’s appreciation against the US Dollar also helped in today’s rally,” he added.
Winners outpaced losers at 130 to 77, leaving 47 counters unchanged.
Meanwhile, the Philippine peso closed at 55.69 to the US dollar Friday from a 55.61-finish in the previous day.
The peso started strong at 55.55 from a kick-off at 55.88 on Thursday.
The currency pair traded between 55.45 and 55.69, bringing the average level for the day to 55.56 to the greenback.
Trade volume reached USD1.67 billion from USD1.99 billion the previous day of trading. (PNA)