MANILA, Philippines – After months of waiting, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) finally broke into bull market territory on Monday, July 15.

The PSEi closed at 8,365, 2.7% higher than the close last Friday, July 12. All counters were in the green as well, with financials (3.4%), holding firms (3.3%), and all shares (2%) leading the pack.

A total of 124 stocks advanced against 62 losers, while 56 remained unchanged.

More than 1.59 billion shares valued at P8.5 billion changed hands during the trading day. (READ: PSEi seen to finish strong at 8,500 in 2019)

The year-to-date change was 899 points higher and up by 12%. This was also the highest close since March 13, 2018.

A bull market occurs when stock prices rise by 20%, usually preceded by a 20% drop and succeeded by a second 20% decline.

The most actively traded were banking stocks, led by BPI (3.5%), Metrobank (5.6%), and BDO (3.9%). Rounding up the top 5 of the most actively traded were Ayala Corporation (1.4%) and its properties arm Ayala Land (0.9%).

Luis Limlingan, managing director of brokerage firm Regina Capital, said the breakout occurred as United States Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell bolstered investor expectations for an interest rate cut at the end of July.

“8,500 is the resistance, while 8,275 is the support level,” Limlingan said.

Foreign buying stood at P5.4 billion, while foreign selling was at P4.3 billion, bringing foreign funds to a net position of P1.04 billion. – Rappler.com