Bourse glitch pushed aside, investors focus on GDP bets

Stocks closed higher on Wednesday as investors brushed off an early-morning technical glitch at the exchange and positioned ahead of the release of the gross domestic product (GDP) data on Thursday.

By the closing bell, the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose 0.57 percent, or 39.86 points, to 7,081.36 while the broader All Shares index added 0.44 percent, or 16.28 points, to 3,702.76.

The Philippine government is expecting the economy to have grown by 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent in 2022. ING Bank forecasts an even faster growth at 7.7 percent while Asean+3 Macroeconomic Research Office said the Philippines likely expanded by 7.3 percent last year.