PSE index up 77.22 pts on Wall Street gains

Shares on the Philippine Stock Exchange rose in moderately active trading Wednesday, buoyed by gains overnight on Wall Street.

“The market slightly recovered with optimism after the US market tried to go for the 13,000 [on the Dow Jones Industrial average],” said Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist at BDO Unibank.

There was also optimism over prospects of another interest rate cut from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas when its policy setting Monetary Board meets Thursday.

However, the positive sentiment was not enough to push the market above the 4,900 mark, said Ravelas, noting that the market may have peaked at 4,943 based on a technical analysis of the charts.

The main PSE index rose 77.22 points or 1.60 percent to close at 4,897.65.

More than 5.718 billion shares valued at P6.201 billion during the morning and afternoon sessions.

Gainers led losers 99 to 53, with 49 issues closing unchanged.

The gains overnight on Wall Street, as well as developments surrounding the euro debt crisis, also gave markets in the region a much-needed boost.

“Asian stocks rose to a seven-month high while the euro and commodity currencies held their ground on Wednesday on hopes a fresh cash injection by the European Central Bank will help further temper market tension and underpin risk appetite,” according to a report.

The European Central Bank will likely inject about •500 billion ($670 billion) into the euro zone's financial system later on Wednesday to fight the regional debt crisis, enabling banks to tap as much of the ultra-cheap, 3year loans as they like. It will be the second injection since December.

Asian stocks also took a cue from overnight US gains, when the S&P 500 rose above its March 2011 peak after US consumer confidence hit a one-year high in February and suggested a recovery in the labor market.

Higher oil prices remain a big negative for the market, said BDO’S Ravelas. This keeps the pressure on when it comes to inflation, he added.