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LOCAL share prices closed higher on Thursday as investors snapped up
bargains after encouraging overnight gains on Wall Street, dealers
said.
But volumes were thin amid cautiousness
following recent sell-offs, they warned.
The composite index finished up 38.52 points at
3,454.60 off a high of 3,473.68.
The broader all-share index rose 16.13 points to
2,121.30.
There were 62 advancers and 36 decliners, while
65 stocks were unchanged.
Volume traded was 2.2 billion shares valued at
P2.9 billion.
“We followed Wall Street’s lead, but gains
came along with some caution, given erratic trading in the US,”
said Rommel Macapagal of Westlink Global Equities.
Investors will keep their eyes on the US market
and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who is scheduled to
deliver later Thursday a speech that is likely to provide clues
about the central bank’s stance on the weakening US economy.
The market largely ignored government data
released Thursday showing a 2-percent fall in Philippine exports in
November from a year earlier.
“I think the weakness in exports, in a way,
has been discounted, given the weakening US economy. Other economic
indicators are positive, with inflation still manageable and
interest rates low, and they may even be cut further,” said Astro
del Castillo of First Grade Holdings.
Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. rose P45
to P3,050, tracking a 2.9-percent gain in its American Depositary
Receipts overnight.
Ayala Land rose 50 centavos to P14.75.
San Miguel Corp. A shares rose 50 centavos to
P61. Its B shares were steady at P61.
Philex Mining Corp. fell 10 centavos to P9.80.
-- AFP
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