Skip to main content

Philippines Stocks Surge Amid Optimism on Pres. Duterte's Trip to China

President Rodrigo Duterte's first state visit to China made a positive impact in the Philippine stocks as it advanced the most in five months amid optimism the his visit to China will improve relations and yield a raft of business deals.



At the close of trading in Manila at 3:30 p.m. local time, the Philippine Stock Exchange Index rose 2.9 percent to 7,571. It is considered as the steepest gain since May 11. Some of the most prominent businesses owned by Filipino-Chinese businessmen rise significantly. SM Prime Holdings Inc., of mall developer Henry Sy, which operates malls in the Philippines and China, jumped 6.5 percent, while another Filipino-Chinese business owner Tony Tan Caktiong of Jollibee Foods Corp. added 4 percent.

According to James Lago, head of research at PCCI Securities Brokers Corp. in Manila, there is optimism that the pivot to China will yield results. He added further that the Philippine market is also at such oversold levels already that valuations are now more reasonable.
The 71-year-old President from Mindanao, Pres. Rody Duterte started his four-day state visit to China on Tuesday, bringing with him more than 400 business leaders, including some of the wealthiest Philippine tycoons.

The meeting with Beijing will provide an opportunity for a reset of relations with the country's biggest trading partner, which have been strained by territorial disputes in the South China Sea or the West Philippine Sea.

Aside from SM Prime Holdings and Jollibee's positive results in the Philippine Stock Market other investors such as SM Investments Corp., parent of SM Prime, climbed 4.1 percent, while JG Summit Holdings Inc., the operator of Robinsons, Cebu Pacific and Universal Robina, jumped 6.6 percent. Bloombery Resorts Corp. also rose by 3.1 percent.

The Philippine Central Bank also announced that based on their data gathered on Monday it showed that money sent home by Overseas Filipino Workers in August grew 16.3 percent, three times the average of economists estimates in a Bloomberg survey.

Source: Bloomberg Markets

Popular posts from this blog

Cimatu warns miners: Don’t befoul watersheds, forests, aquatic resources

© Provided by Mediamerge Corporation Newly-appointed Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Roy Cimatu poses for a photo before being sworn into office by President Rodrigo Duterte ahead of the 15th Cabinet meeting in Malacañang on Monday, May 7, 2017. Robinson Niñal/PPD Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu on Tuesday warned mining firms to observe responsible mining and avoid destructive practices or face sanctions His pronouncement came in response to President Rodrigo Duterte's second State of the Nation Address, in which the chief executive emphasized mining's impact on the environment. "I know for a fact that in a number of cases, weak and irresponsible mining practices result [in] environmental destruction—contaminating farmlands and poisoning our rivers and seas," Cimatu said in a statement. "Miners better refrain from despoiling our watersheds, forests and aquatic resources," he added. Cimatu said the Department of Environment and Natural Res...

You can pay at a restaurant by smiling at a camera

© Provided by Engadget As easy as it is to make purchases in the era of tap-to-pay services , it's about to get easier still. Alipay (which handles purchases for Chinese shopping giant Alibaba) has launched what it says is the first payment system that uses facial recognition to complete the sale. If you visit one of KFC's KPRO restaurants in Hangzhou, China, you can pay for your panini or salad by smiling at a camera-equipped kiosk -- you need to verify the purchase on your phone, but you don't have to punch in digits or bring your phone up to an NFC reader. The system (Smile to Pay) is purportedly resistant to spoofing with photos and other tricks. It relies on both depth-sensing cameras and a "likeness detection algorithm" to make sure it's really you. Reportedly, the technology is good enough that it can accurately identify people even when they're disguising themselves through makeup or wigs. You shouldn't have to worry about someone buying ...

DOF opposes tiered approach to tax on sugary drinks

© Provided by Mediamerge Corporation MONEY- Tax thumbnail The Department of Finance (DOF) is not amenable to Senator Juan Edgardo Angara's suggestion to implement the proposed levy on sugar sweetened beverages via a three-tier system. "We oppose the tiered approach. Meaning 'yung first seven grams will be tax free and then after that would be taxable," Finance Undersecretary Karl Chua said during the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (EJAP) Economic Forum in Manila on Friday. Chua note the tiered approach may compel manufacturers to come up with smaller packaging. "So you can drink three of them with no taxes," the Finance official said. It will defeat the purpose of imposing excise tax on sugary drinks as a health measure, he added. During deliberations on the comprehensive tax reform bill, Angara floated the idea of implementing the excise tax on sugar sweetened beverages under a three-tier system to incentivize those who manufactu...