Philippines share prices closed 2.81 percent higher on Tuesday, hitting a one-month high due to the decline of local Treasury Bill rates and the upsurge on Wall Street, dealers said.
They said Treasury bill rates fell for the first time in over two months on Monday amid easing concern about interest rates, and after the government reduced its offering of government securities in the third quarter.
The composite index gained 61.64 points to close at the day's high of 2,256.48 It touched a low of 2,194.84. It is the main index's best finish since June 6 when it ended at 2,289.80. Volume stood at 1.29 billion shares worth 1.43 billion pesos (27.1 million dollars.) Gainers outnumbered losers 47 to 25, while 64 stocks were unchanged.
The broader all-shares index advanced 26.91 points to 1,402.31, with most of the sub-indices ending in positive territory. The local currency traded at 52.811 to the dollar. "After the market fell by so much, it's now time to pick up the bargains," said Lawrence de Leon of Accord Capital Equities.
He said the sell-off in recent weeks had brought counters to attractively cheap levels, providing investors with an opportunity to hunt for bargains before second-quarter earnings start coming out in the middle of this month.
"In terms of volume, though, the market has yet to fully recover," de Leon added.
Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co was the most actively traded stock, rising 100 pesos to 1,975. It tracked the sustained advance overnight of its American Depositary Receipts. Globe Telecom Inc was up 25 at 955.
Ayala Land Inc gained 50 centavos at 12.50 pesos while its parent, Ayala Corp, rose 15 pesos to 385. Bank of the Philippine Islands was up 1.50 at 50.50 and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co gained one at 35.50. San Miguel Corp saw its A and B shares remain unchanged at 65 and 71.50 respectively.