The country’s main stock index rallied on Friday after several days of sideways trading as US and Asian stocks ended higher on easing trade tensions.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) surged 110.27 points or 1.79 percent to close at 6,268.75 while the broader all shares index rose 37.44 points or 1.02 percent to 3,695.69.
Analysts said investor sentiment is being boosted by hopes that US President Donald Trump will soften its stance on tariffs and possible rate cut by US Federal Reserve during its next meeting slated early May.
Only the mining and index ended in the red, declining by 0.72 percent. Holding firms rose 2.31 percent, while property and services improved 1.83 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.Value turnover reached P6.35 billion with 117 advancers, 79 decliners and 45 names unchanged.
Bloomberry Resorts Corp., emerged as the top gainer for the day, rising by 18.89 percent to P3.21 per share after the company announced plans to launch its online gaming venture in the second quarter of the year.
Meanwhile, Asian and European stocks climbed on Friday, buoyed by a rally on Wall Street and the prospect of trade deals progressing between the United States and some of its economic partners.
US stocks rallied for a third straight session on Thursday, shrugging off signs that US trade deals with China and the European Union aren’t imminent despite promising signs elsewhere.
Beijing said on Thursday any claims of ongoing trade talks with Washington were “groundless” after US President Donald Trump played up the prospects of a deal to lower the 145 percent tariffs he imposed on most Chinese exports.France’s economy minister Eric Lombard said a trade deal between the United States and the European Union was also a way off.
However, global markets appear to have brushed aside the lack of progress.
“There are mixed signals about whether there have been some talks about trade between the US and China,” said Lloyd Chan, a senior currency analyst at MUFG. “Nonetheless, the trade war and US policy-related uncertainty have persisted. Asian economies still face the risk of higher reciprocal tariffs.”
China’s top leaders urged more support for the economy and opposed “unilateral bullying” in global trade, according to a readout of a meeting published by state media on Friday.
Tokyo jumped 1.9 percent and Hong Kong was up 0.3 percent, while Shanghai was flat. The Nikkei rise came despite struggling Japanese auto giant Nissan issuing a stark profit warning on Thursday, forecasting a huge loss of up to $5.3 billion in the 2024-25 financial year.
The markets see that the company “is moving ahead toward turnaround”, said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Tatsuo Yoshida, as Nissan shares climbed more than 1.6 percent on Friday. ”Booking significant impairment losses and restructuring charges is a necessary step toward Nissan Motor’s turnaround.”
Japanese media reported on Thursday that a second round of trade talks in Washington was set for May 1, which will be closely watched as a barometer for efforts by other countries seeking tariff relief.
Seoul jumped one percent after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said a trade “understanding” between South Korea and the United States could be reached by next week.
Taipei, Wellington, Singapore, Manila, Bangkok and Jakarta also climbed.
Markets were also responding to strong earnings from Google parent Alphabet, which reported on Thursday a profit of $34.5 billion in the recently ended quarter.
Overall revenue at Alphabet grew 12 percent to $90.2 billion compared with the same period a year earlier, while revenue for its cloud unit grew 28 percent to $12.3 billion, according to the tech giant.
London, Paris and Frankfurt were all up at the open.
MUFG’s Chan also pointed to the Federal Reserve possibly cutting interest rates sooner than expected.
Fed Governor Christopher Waller said during an interview with Bloomberg Television that he would support interest rate cuts if harsh tariffs hurt the jobs market
.”In terms of the latest Fed speak, Fed’s Waller has said he would support rate cuts should there be a significant deterioration in the labour market,” Chan said. With AFP
