Philippine stock market rallies Monday on bargain hunting

The Philippine stock market rallied along with the rest of the emerging equities as bargain hunters continue to buy stocks. The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index gained 0.95 percent or 61.34 points to 6,526.62, while the broader all-share index rose by 1 percent or 39.22 points to 3,971.26. Trading volume reached 1.07 billion shares worth 6.60 billion pesos (153.13 million U.S. dollars) with 112 stocks advancing, 53 declining, and 40 unchanged. All six counters were up. "Local share prices got a lift from bargain hunters, overcoming a soft start and pushing the index higher for a fourth straight session," analyst Justino Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp. said in his daily stock market comment. Despite Monday's rally, however, Calaycay said investors' confidence is still "hanging in the balance" although the 3-day rally might rekindle some optimism. "Investors will always be on the prowl for bargains that were opened and have remained unrecognized or ignored as the market waited for risks to dissipate," he said. At present, Calaycay said concerns have temporarily shifted to China after manufacturing data grew at its slowest pace in four months as credit flow was squeezed. This, he said, raises concerns on the overall economic growth rate for the world's second largest economy and puts downward pressure on commodity prices, as China accounts for a bulk of demand for metals, copper and other commodities and minerals. Stocks in the 30-company index were mostly up. These issues include SM Investments Corp., Ayala Corp., and SM Prime Holdings, Inc.