MANILA: The local bourse continued to strengthen, returning to the 6,500 level, while the Philippine peso also gained against the US dollar on Thursday. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 0.89 percent closing at 6,507.49, with All Shares also improving by 0.59 percent to 3,515.87. Only Holding Firms shed on Thursday's trading, slipping by 0.04 percent to 5,525.86. Services led winners as it strengthened by 1.78 percent, followed by Financials, Mining and Oil, Property, and Industrial. Philstocks Financial, Inc. research and engagement officer Mikhail Plopenio said the local stock market mirrors performances of its Asian peers taking cues from the S and P 500 and the NASDAQ's record performances overnight. "Aside from the positive spillovers, foreign inflows also aided the local bourse's climb as foreigners were net buyers with net inflows amounting to PHP462.91 million," he added. "However, net market value turnover was tepid at PHP4.04 billion, lower than the year-to-date average of PHP4 .98 billion." Advancers led decliners at 90 to 83, with 62 counters left unchanged. Meanwhile, the peso closed strong at 58.58 to the US dollar, gaining 0.15 from 58.73 to the dollar in Wednesday's trading. The peso started the day strong at 58.63 from its previous-day kick-off at 58.77 to the dollar. The currency pair traded at a low of 58.58 and a high of 58.70, bringing the day's average to 58.64 to the greenback. Trade volume surged to USD1.1 billion from USD779.72 million on Wednesday. Source: Philippines News Agency