THE PHILIPPINE stock market, one of the best performing in the region, is starting to attract a bigger share of foreign portfolio inflows to Asian emerging markets.
Net foreign buying in the Philippine Stock Exchange doubled to P15.8 billion in the first semester from P8.3 billion in the same period last year, PSE president and chief executive officer Val Antonio Suarez said Friday.
The volume of trades in the market also jumped 32.5 percent as the daily turnover for the first half of the year stood at P4.2 billion from P3.2 billion in the same period last year, Suarez said.
He said the favorable economic backdrop and the positive outlook of investors on emerging economies such as the Philippines presented bright prospects for the stock market.
The PSE chief noted that as the US-led crisis bottomed out, the stock market has rebounded strongly. The main-share PSE index has surged 14.7 percent as of Aug. 17 and recorded its highest level in more than two years since the crisis when it closed at 3,525.81 points on Aug 10.
In 2009, the PSEi likewise gained 63 percent, a turnaround from the 48.3 percent decline in 2008.
The shares of the PSE has also benefitted from the trading rebound, gaining P15 or 5.58 percent to end at P284 each last Thursday, buoyed by its recent positive earnings announcement.
Based on its financial statement submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, the PSE’s net income soared 91 percent in the first six months due to higher listing and trading-related revenues and lower operating expenses. Net income grew to P148.3 million in the period from January to June, from P77.6 million in the same period last year. In the April to June quarter, net income also rose 33 percent to P65.79 million from 49.36 million in the same period last year.
“The share performance reflects investor optimism on our growth story and is a vote of confidence on the initiatives we have taken to improve the operations of the exchange,” Suarez said.
Published in Philippine Daily Inquirer August 20, 2010.
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