Local stocks advanced Thursday, tracking the US and Asian benchmarks on favorable comments from the US Federal Reserve on interest rate cut.
Analysts said investors also welcomed the comment from National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan that March inflation rate would not be higher than the 3.4 percent registered in February. After a much-anticipated policy meeting, officials held rates for the fifth time in a row and released dot plot projections that showed they saw 75 basis points of cuts before year’s end, unchanged from December’s outlook. Observers suggested June would likely see the first move.
The buying excitement flowed through to Asia, where Tokyo ended at another record high, while Hong Kong piled on nearly two percent. They were followed higher by Seoul, Sydney, Mumbai, Singapore, Taipei, Bangkok, Wellington, Manila and Jakarta. Shanghai dipped.“The absence of any particularly hawkish news provided a green light for the market to continue its upward trajectory,” said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.