Positive outlook pushes PHL shares higher

Aggressive trading pushed Philippine shares higher Tuesday, helped by expectations that the country is slated for a credit rating upgrade around the middle of the year.   “The trading opened quite weak, but there was aggressive accumulation towards the end,” said Freya Natividad, head of research at F. Yap Securities Inc.   The market performed in a surprising manner, especially with the aggressive buying among participants, Natividad noted.   “They’re taking advantage of dips… they’re accumulating on dips,” she added.   The Philippine Stock Exchange index rose 37.95 points or 0.81 percent to close at 4,682.44.   More than 3.496 billion shares valued at P16.162 billion were traded.   Winners led losers 109 to 57, with 39 issues closing unchanged.   Overnight on Wall Street, “the Dow Jones industrial average dropped 6.74 points, or 0.05 percent, to 12,653.72,” according to a Reuters report.   However, “Asian shares and the euro rose on Tuesday after Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos raised hopes that a deal would be reached this week to avoid a potentially chaotic debt default, but worries over Portugal's refinancing ability capped gains,” Reuters noted in a separate report. — TJD/KG, GMA News