Manila: Anticipation for further cuts in the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) key rates propelled the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) to surpass the 6,000-mark on Monday, while the Philippine peso ended the day trading sideways against the U.S. dollar.

According to Philippines News Agency, the local bourse's main index increased by 0.35 percent, reaching 6,058.02 points, with the broader All Shares index climbing 0.61 percent to 3,455.83 points. Gains were recorded in most sectoral indices, with the Mining and Oil index leading the way after a rise of 2.26 percent. This was followed by the Property index at 2 percent, Financials at 1.82 percent, Holding Firms at 1.09 percent, and Industrial at 0.99 percent. The Services index was the only sector to close in the negative, shedding 3.28 percent.

The trading day saw a volume of 748.41 million shares, amounting to PHP6.4 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners at 131 to 81, with 50 shares remaining unchanged. Philstocks Financials Inc. attributed the PSEi's uptick to "hopes for further monetary policy easing," referencing Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli Remolona Jr.'s indication of a potential additional rate cut by 2026. This follows a recent 25 basis points reduction in the BSP's key rates, as stated by the central bank chief last Thursday.

In currency trading, the Philippine peso closed at 59.04 against the U.S. dollar, slightly up from its previous close of 59.06 last Friday. The peso opened the day at 59.15, weaker than the previous session's start of 58.98, and traded between 59.18 and 59.04, averaging 59.11 for the day. Trading volume declined to USD911 million from USD1.65 billion at the end of last week.