Fed hike worries seen to drag on trading

MANILA – Investors will likely remain on the sidelines on Wednesday, as they await first half economic growth data, with the prospect of an interest rate increase in the United States before the end of the year weighing on sentiment, an analyst said.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index closed 0.29 percent higher to 7,983.38 on Tuesday. Asian shares stepped back from a one-year high on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said a rate increase could come as soon as September.

“Its going to be a quiet day today, with light risk on the downside,” BPI Securities analyst Riche Lim told ANC’s “Market Edge with Cathy Yang.”

source: www.abs=cbnnews.com

Shares up on telco gains, buck regional downtrend

MANILA - Share prices traded higher on Wednesday, boosted by gains in Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Globe Telecom, after the two companies purchased San Miguel Corp.'s telecommunications business.


The Philippine Stock Exchange index was up 1.26 percent at P7,495.09 in late trading. Tokyo and Hong Kong stocks fell.

PLDT was up 2 percent to P1,938 while Globe was 1.66 percent higher to P2,450. San Miguel was down 2.44 percent to P80.

The P70-billion deal, wherein rivals PLDT and Globe each bought a 50-percent stake in San Miguel's telecommunications assets, effectively ended the conglomerate's bid to crack the market duopoly.

"At the end of the day, the third player didn't really materialize. What you have is still PLDT and Globe and they still have to fight for market share, and the expectation there is still on and that has an impact on their margins," BPI Securities analyst Jomar Lacson said.

San Miguel "can now redeploy capital towards more profitable investments," he said.

Lacson said he saw two to three more weeks of volatility, in the run-up to the Federal Reserve meeting by end-June, where it may, or may not raise interest rates.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com