PSEi rebounds on easing tensions in US-NoKor spat

Philippine share prices rebounded on Monday after four consecutive trading days of losses, as tensions between the US and North Korea ebbed.

The main PSEi gained 33.69 points or 0.43 percent to 7,962.12. The broader All Shares climbed 24.23 points or 0.52 percent to 4,706.04.

"The PSEi recovered along with most regional markets from the drop last Thursday and Friday. The silence or lack of news regarding geopolitical concerns on NoKor has provided some relief to the market," Jeffrey Lucero, equity research analyst at RCBC Securities Inc., said.

Markets fell on Thursday and Friday as tensions over the Korean Peninsula escalated, as Pyongyang warned it was "carefully examining" plans to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile against the US Pacific territory of Guam.

"To add to that, I think the market movement is still driven by earnings as companies that reported earnings which are generally in line with consensus and company target," Lucero said.

But food companies suffered losses in light of the bird flu outbreak in San Luis, Pampanga. Vitarich Corp. fell by P0.12 or 5.88 percent to P1.92 apiece from P2.04 per share.

"Most of the food-related stocks that are down are not on the PSEi. But, if anything, it could have been a knee-jerk reaction," Lucero noted.

The Department of Agriculture reported on Friday an outbreak of the avian influenza type A subtype H5 in a poultry farm in Barangay San Agustin. The bird flu virus spread to other farms in the area.

More than 764.613 million shares, valued at P5.115 billion, changed hands. Winners led losers, 106 to 96, and 47 issues were unchanged.