RP stocks rise in trading ruined by technical glitches

(UPDATED 10:30 p.m.) — Local stocks recovered what they lost the day before on a shortened trading day ruined by technical glitches. The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index gained 35.5 points to 3,069.63 on Friday following announcements of positive 2009 corporate results and optimism about profits this year. Shortly before noon, the bourse issued a statement saying it had resolved technical problems experienced in the morning and was extending trading until 1 p.m. The exchange e-mailed corrected figures to news organizations at about 6 p.m. but as of Friday night, market information on the PSE Website was still incorrect. Analysts noted that in the end, the composite index had not been pulled down by the trading delay, and had in fact been boosted by optimism about corporate earnings as a result of election spending. “The money spent by candidates for the campaign will ultimately be circulated to people. Revenues of media, food and communication companies are definitely going up," analyst Emmanuel Soller of Equitiworld Securities said in an interview. But investors, he said, were not bullish about the mining and oil sector amid talks of natural disasters here and abroad. Wall Street’s rise overnight also pulled local share prices up, analysts said. The Dow Jones industrial average rose by 47 points, while the S&P 500 index added 4 points. The NASDAQ composite also gained 11 points. "One factor for the rise was that annual corporate results showed positive operations for companies. Another is the stabilization of the overseas market, which lessened investor worries," Soller said. "The market is still within a resistant level, but it’s moving towards a correction. We expect to see some correction in the coming week," Harry Liu of Summit Securities said. Despite the index rise, losers beat gainers 50 to 43, while 58 stocks were unchanged. A total of 1.74 billion stocks worth P2.67 billion changed hands, with five of the six subindices advancing. Industrial stocks rose by 88.82 points to 4,627.56, while property companies closed 21.17 points higher at 1,062.44. Financial stocks also added 8.83 points to 645.48, while services went up by 6.59 points to 1,547.26. Holding firms likewise edged up by 0.05 point to 1,736.56. Mining and oil stocks bucked the trend, losing 77.75 points to finish at 9,562.96. — Nikka Corsino, OMG/NPA, GMANews.TV