Philippine share prices closed 0.59 percent higher on Wednesday as investors picked up bargains and fund managers carried out window-dressing to boost their portfolios ahead of the year-end holidays, dealers said.
The composite index added 12.27 points to 2,075.05 after trading between 2,064.61 and 2,075.83 on volume of 734 million shares worth 1.17 billion pesos (21.84 million dollars).
The broader all-shares index gained 6.30 points to 1,259.74. Gainers outnumbered losers 38 to 24, with 49 stocks unchanged. The peso was at 53.56 to the dollar by midday.
"We were down sharply last week and investors have taken advantage of this weakness to position for 2006," said Astro del Castillo of First Grade Holdings.
Some fund managers have also been purchasing high-flying stocks to window-dress their portfolios before presenting them to clients by the end of the year, dealers said.
Ayala Land was the main mover, closing up 20 centavos to 9.80 pesos, with parent Ayala Corp adding five pesos to 305. SM Prime Holdings advanced 20 centavos to eight pesos, while parent SM Investments Corp fell by a peso to 239. Philippine Long Distance Telephone fell 15 pesos to 1,785 while rival Globe Telecom ended unchanged at 715 pesos. San Miguel A-shares rose 50 centavos to 64.50 pesos, while San Miguel B-shares gained 50 centavos to 87.50 pesos.
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