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Manila shares

end with gains

MANILA: Philippine shares closed higher, ending a four-day losing streak, as bargain hunters picked up select secondliners and speculated on mining and oil issues, brokers said on Friday.

"There's a lot of interest in secondliners ... Investors were still avoiding blue chip issues, they have not fully digested their weak first half earnings," Fritz Azanza of Kim Eng Securities said.

The 30-share composite index inched up 7.25 points to close at 2,777.22 points, provisional data from the exchange showed.

Biggest gainers were led by AGP Industrial Corp B which advanced 8.00 percent to 42 pesos on speculation it will clinch a contract to build an elevated rail system in Manila.

Philip Tan of BPI Capital Corp viewed the recovery as technical in nature as local stocks have been battered by profit-taking in the past few sessions.

He said many investors opted to stay sidelined, still awaiting a clearer direction from foreign investors.-Reuter