Stocks rallied Monday on bargain hunting after Metro Manila and several parts of the country brace for a full reopening of the economy starting today amid lower COVID-19 cases.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index surged 98.78 points, or 1.4 percent, to 7,311.01 on a value turnover of P11.6 billion. Gainers beat losers, 108 to 79, with 49 issues unchanged.
Noodles maker Monde Nissin Corp. jumped 11.6 percent to P16.52, while major property developer Ayala Land Inc. advanced 4.8 percent to P39.
SM Prime Holdings Inc. of the Sy Group rose 4.7 percent to P39.80, while parent SM Investments Corp. added 2.4 percent to P892.
Oil prices and safe havens, meanwhile, surged Monday while the ruble and European equities sank after world powers imposed fresh sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, fanning fears about a possible global energy crisis that could further stoke inflation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to send troops across the border last week has sent shivers through trading floors as investors fret over a protracted war in the resource-rich region.
Adding to the unease among investors was news that Putin had put his nuclear forces on a higher alert in reaction to the latest stiff measures.
Equities rallied Friday and oil dipped as dealers assessed that the punishments imposed on Moscow were light enough to not hit its crucial oil exports—Russia is the world’s third-biggest producer—at a time when supplies are thin and demand is surging.
But the picture was changed at the weekend, when the United States and European Union said they would exclude some Russian banks from the international bank payments system SWIFT and personally targeted Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
They also banned all transactions with Russia’s central bank, sending the ruble crashing, with Bloomberg saying it was indicated to be nearly 30 percent down in offshore trading Monday. News that the central bank had hiked interest rates to 20 percent—the highest since 2003—helped pared the unit’s losses only briefly.
“Removing some Russian banks from SWIFT could result in a disruption of oil supplies as buyers and sellers try to figure out how to navigate the new rules,” Andy Lipow, of Lipow Oil Associates in Houston, noted.
Crude surged, with WTI climbing towards the $100 mark, while Brent bounced back above that level after slipping on Friday.
Other commodities rallied, with wheat, aluminum and nickel also sharply higher.
However, most Asian equity markets recovered from morning selling as traders focus on a planned meeting of Ukraine and Russian officials on the border with Belarus hoping for an easing of the offensive.
Traders will be closely watching a meeting this week of OPEC and other major producers led by Russia, where they will discuss plans for further output.
The group had agreed previously to increase production gradually each month, but the Ukraine crisis could throw those plans into disarray.
Gold and the yen, go-to assets in times of uncertainty, rose, while the dollar was up against all other currencies. With AFP