Stocks rebounded Wednesday, ending a three-day slump as investors searched for bargains and investors questioned whether they may have overreacted to Donald Trump’s shock US election victory.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, advanced 109 points, or 1.6 percent, to close at 6,966.28 Wednesday.
The heavier index, representing all shares, also rose 48 points, or 1.2 percent, to settle at 4,211.45, on a value turnover of P6.5 billion. Gainers outnumbered losers, 104 to 75, while 45 issues were unchanged.
All six sectors rose, while 17 of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by infrastructure company Megawide Construction Corp. which climbed 6.3 percent to P15.30 and property developer Ayala Land Inc. which gained 4.8 percent to P33.
SM Prime Holdings Inc., the investment company of tycoon Henry Sy, rose 3.9 percent to P27, while JG Summit Holdings Inc. of the Gokongwei family added 3.7 percent to close at P70.65.
Meanwhile, energy firms led a rally in Asia equities markets on Wednesday after oil prices soared on hopes for a deal by producers to cut output, while the dollar settled back after its latest gains.
The advance on trading floors is the latest in a volatile week for global markets after Trump’s shock election victory, which has fanned uncertainty for the US and the world economy.
News that the OPEC exporters club and non-member Russia were engaged in a push to agree a deal fueled a rush back into crude, which has in recent weeks been hit by worries over the chances of a cut as well as a strong dollar.
Both main contracts rallied almost six percent Tuesday on renewed hopes OPEC can reach a deal before it holds its twice-yearly meeting at the end of the month.
“With OPEC production at record highs, meaning any cut has to get bigger by the day, any news that this mountain can be climbed by November 30th is seized upon,” Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at OANDA, said in a note.
“With fast money flows dominating so many other markets at the moment it is no surprise that it was oil’s turn,” he said, adding: “We can expect more of this intra-day volatility over the next two weeks.”
Brent and West Texas Intermediate extended their gains in Asia Wednesday, providing fresh impetus to regional energy-linked firms.
Among the big winners, Hong Kong-listed CNOOC soared 3.5 percent, Woodside Petroleum jumped more than two percent in Sydney and Inpex was three percent higher in Tokyo.
The gains filtered through to broader markets, with most major indexes tracking another record close on Wall Street.
Tokyo jumped 1.1 percent as another rise in the dollar provided further support for exporters. The greenback touched 109.34 yen at one point late Tuesday before easing back, although it is still hovering above the 109 yen mark in Asia.
Analysts are tipping the dollar to hit the 110 yen range soon as investors bet on a sharper rise in US interest rates after Trump pledged to ramp up spending and cut taxes.
Etsuko Yamashita, chief economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp in New York, told Bloomberg News: “The dollar is rallying ahead on expectations for a quicker pace of rate increases next year, putting the 110 yen level by year-end possibly in sight.”
Hong Kong added 0.6 percent and Singapore put on 0.7 percent while Seoul was up 0.6 percent. However, Shanghai eased 0.1 percent. With AFP, Bloomberg