Philippine bourse closes almost flat on US job data

The Philippine stock market barely managed to eke out a gain on Monday as investors remain unsure of the local equities.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index added 0.02 percent or 1.83 points to 7,534.35, while the broader all-share index rose by 0.27 percent or 11.67 points to 4,332.27.

Trading volume reached 957 million shares worth 5.80 billion Philippine pesos (126.62 million U.S. Dollars) with 84 stocks advancing, 76 declining, and 48 were unchanged.

Two of the six counters only contributed to Monday's rallies. These were the financials and the industrial sectors.

"Sideways, with slight upward bias greeted Monday's trading session, as the latest US jobs data might indicate further delays in the US Federal Reserve's rate hike," online brokerage 2TradeAsia.com said in its daily stock market comment.

The U.S. Labor Department said Friday that employers added 6, 000 more jobs in May and 8,000 more in June than previously estimated, while the unemployment rate held steady at 5.3 percent last month.

Analyst Justino Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp. said in his daily stock market comment that on the whole investors should be training their sights on corporate earnings with the second quarter cycle approaching its climax.

Listed companies are required by law to submit their quarterly financial statements on August 15.

"Set against this backdrop, financials, property and holdings might be favored, especially those that have declined to attractive bargains," 2TradeAsia.com said.

The online brokerage advises investors to continue to trade a range as supply-side pressure might still be felt on intra-day rallies.

Stocks in the 30-company index were mostly up. These include JG Summit Holdings, Universal Robina and Globe Telecom.