MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Traders at the Philippine stock market were on high spirits Monday as the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) reached another record high, its 25th for this year.
The PSEi for the first time passed the 8,000 level following the long Holy Week break, registering 8,053.74 points at the closing bell on Monday.
The closing points were higher by 60.65 points from a record high registered last week.
The PSEi also reached a new all-time intraday high of 8,062.79, eclipsing the previous intraday high of 8,007.98 registered on March 30, 2015.
“Closing above the 8,000 level is significant as it reinforces the favorable view that investors have on our market. We are optimistic that the positive local developments and upbeat outlook on listed firms will provide more upside potential for the index,” said PSE President and CEO Hans B. Sicat.
Year-to-date, the PSEi has established 25 record finishes and has posted a gain of 11.4 percent.
All of the industries registered gains on Monday, except for Financials, which lost 0.04% to 1,876.31.
Mining and Oil gained the most, ending higher by 210.94 points from last week. Holding firms also gained 70.59 points.
Around Asia, a dismal US jobs report supported the case for the Federal Reserve to hold off from raising interest rates, raising Asian shares on Monday.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.6%, its highest level since September 2014, after the US Labor Department released data showing American employers added fewer jobs, just 126,000, in more than a year in March.
The employment data was lower than the expected gain of 245,000. US stock markets and major European markets were closed from Friday to Monday for the Easter holiday.
Markets are closed for the Easter Monday holiday in Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Thailand.
The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes also stood at 1.829% in Asian trading Monday after hitting nearly two-month low of 1.8% on Friday. – BusinessNewsAsia.com