PSEi hits new high, nears 8,500

THE stock market continued its run of record highs on Friday, with the Philippine Stock Exchange index ( PSEi) gaining 0.54 percent or 45.13 points to close at 8,447.94.

The wider All Shares grew 0.20 percent or 9.83 points to settle at 4,983.11.

“[ I] nvestors remain positive and the momentum is really there,” First Grade Finance, Inc. Managing Director Astro del Castillo said, adding that “We continue to ignore negative news. So it’s a confluence of positive news local and overseas.”

Sentiment was also said have been helped by the govern- ment’s backtracking on President Rodrigo Duterte’s threat to expel European Union diplomats for allegedly warning that the Philippines could be booted out of the United Nations.

Regina Capital Development Corp. meanwhile, said stocks had traded positively “on optimism that US economic data will embolden expectations of gradual rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve.”

Minutes from the recent Federal Open Market Committee meeting showed that US central bankers were divided over raising interest rates anew after doing so twice this year. Most,

however, still favor an increase and the expectation is that rates will be raised this December.

The release of September in time, is expected to provide an indication of where the Fed could go in terms of policy.

Sectoral results were mixed anew on Friday, meanwhile, with financials the biggest gainer at 1.92 percent and the mining and oil index losing 0.84 percent.

Volume turnover was thin at 862 million shares valued P9.55 billion.

Losers outnumbered winners, 106 to 91, while 45 issues were unchanged.