The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) said Monday it expects at least six initial public offerings and P175 billion worth of equity deals in 2024 on improved macroeconomic fundamentals.
“We are expecting six initial public offerings for the year, starting with the listing of Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. Since no new REITs [real estate investment trust] were added in 2023, we hope to see REIT IPOs make a comeback this year,” PSE president Ramon Monzon said in a statement.
Monzon said of the P175-billion capital raising target for the year, P40 billion would come from IPOs while the remaining amount would be from preferred shares offering, stock rights offering and private placements.
He said the sustained growth of the domestic economy and the easing of inflation rate would likely enhance investor sentiment in 2024.
“Despite the challenging conditions encountered by the stock market [in 2023], we believe that positive macroeconomic indicators for the country in 2024, such as higher GDP [gross domestic product] growth, lower inflation and possible reduction in interest rates will result in better corporate earnings which in turn will propel our market to higher levels,” said Monzon.
Monzon said, however, there were still risks to the positive outlook including the potential impact of higher transport charges, electricity rates and international oil prices.
The 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange index closed 2023 at 6,450.04 points, down 1.8 percent from last year’s finish of 6,566.39.
Monzon said to avoid another sluggish trading environment, the PSE would continue to push for regulatory reforms to boost liquidity, attract new investors and expand product offerings.
Among these reforms included the reduction of the stock transaction tax from 0.6 percent to 0.1 percent and the dividend tax to non-resident aliens from 25 percent to 10 percent to harmonize the cash and property dividend rate.
The PSE also offers support for prospective listing applicants by providing guidance through advisory and learning sessions, access to pre-listing assessment tools and connections to experienced advisors.
“The exchange will continue to introduce new products and push for new laws and regulatory reforms that will promote and encourage wider stock market participation and entice foreign investors back to our market. We will likewise continue to pursue our various initiatives to help and attract companies to list their shares in the Exchange,” Monzon said.