PSE opens strong on back of 'peaceful' elections and strong overseas markets

Post-election trading took off with a rally in local stocks, with relatively peaceful polls and positive overseas markets perking up investors. As of 10:30 a.m, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) is up by 124.11 points or 3.95 percent to 3,266.17. At one point, the index was up by as much as 156 points. "It is a confluence of several factors. First, finally elections are over. That's one less headache for us, and it has been peaceful and orderly. Second, the financial market also surged last night. [Dow Jones] was up by more than 400 points, mainly because [of commitments to save the Europen crisis]," analyst Astro Del Castillo of First Grade Holdings said in an interview. Del Castillo added that the market is set to surge in the next days with continuous positive news from the domestic and international fronts. The Dow Jones industrial average surged by 404.71 points overnight, while the NASDAQ composite and Standard & Poor's 500 index also gained 109.03 points and 48.85 points, respectively. The Dow's overnight gains are its highest since March 23, 2009 after a promised $1-trillion European rescue plan. The all-share index is also up by 68.75 points or 3.5 percent to 2,035.52, while subindices are up across the board, increasing at an average of four percent each. There are also 98 gainers, 9 losers, and 26 steady so far. All the 20 most active stocks, led by dominant carrier Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, also rallied. - Nikka Corsino/OMG, GMANews.TV