The Philippine Stock Exchange index finally returned above the 6,600 levels after it ended this week’s trading at 6,606, up by 12.26 points or 0.19 percent.
Philstocks Financial Inc. assistant manager for research and online engagement Claire Alviar said the market sentiment was buoyed by the positive gains of US markets overnight, as well as the performance of Asian peers as US Federal Reserve chairperson Jerome Powell vowed to temper the inflation rate.
“At home, good employment figures in July also boosted the sentiment,” she said.
Despite SM Investments Inc. doing the heavy lifting due to its 2.98 percent gains, the overall market participation remained weak — with net value turnover posting at only P4.13 billion, still lower than the year-to-date average of P6.2 billion.
Upon Friday’s closing, sectors were mixed. Holdings led the gainers, while Properties lost the most by 1.44 percent. Emperador Inc. had the biggest loss in the index after it slipped by 3.60 percent.