STOCKS closed the week higher to track Wall Street’s gains after US jobless claims dropped.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 62.47 points or 0.91% to close at 6,897.13 on Friday, while the broader all shares index went up by 29.58 points or 0.69% to finish at 4,261.69.
“The bourse ended higher as the positive performance in the US markets spilled over to our local index, amid the latest reports that the US jobless claims fell last week,” Timson Securities, Inc. Trader Darren Blaine T. Pangan said in a Viber message on Friday.
“Locally, investors continue to feel optimistic while assessing how the government will approach the quarantine restrictions to be implemented in the country,” he added.
“The PSEi inched higher on signs that the surge in COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) cases were peaking. Sentiment also got a boost from US stocks, which finished in the green following the encouraging report that the US weekly jobless claims hit the lowest since the pandemic began,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a separate Viber message.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq eked out record finishes on Thursday, while the Dow also posted a modest gain, as higher commodity prices helped energy names recover ground and the latest jobs data left investors unfazed about existing positions, Reuters reported.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 131.29 points or 0.37% to 35,443.82; the S&P 500 gained 12.86 points or 0.28% to 4,536.95; and the Nasdaq Composite added 21.80 points or 0.14% to 15,331.18.
Data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week, although the focus will be on the US Labor Department’s monthly jobs report on Friday to set the stage for the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting later this month.
Back home, most sectoral indices climbed except for services, which declined by 11.31 points or 0.63% to end at 1,768.72, and mining and oil, which lost 4.88 points or 0.05% to 9,486.22.
Meanwhile, holding firms climbed 156.19 points or 2.29% to 6,974.89; financials went up by 8.94 points or 0.62% to 1,450.61; industrials increased by 62.28 points or 0.61% to 10,137.96; and property rose by 7.84 points or 0.25% to close at 3,075.91.
Value turnover went down to P6.45 billion with 1.58 billion shares switching hands on Friday, from the P6.92 billion with 1.52 billion issues traded the previous day.
Advancers narrowly beat decliners, 104 against 102, while 39 names closed unchanged.
Foreigners turned buyers anew with P242.74 million in net purchases on Friday, a turnaround from the P69.83 million in net outflows seen on Thursday.
Timson Securities’ Mr. Pangan said: “6,980 seems to be the nearest resistance area for the index, while 6,780 may be considered the closest support level to watch next week.” — K.C.G. Valmonte with Reuters