Local stocks finished marginally higher in thin trading on Friday, April 10, as investors balanced optimism from a Wall Street rally against heightened anxiety over upcoming geopolitical negotiations.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) edged up 8.30 points, or 0.14 percent, to end the week at 6,098.21. While the benchmark secured its third consecutive day of gains, the broader market reflected a more hesitant tone.

Decliners slightly outnumbered advancers, 102 to 100, while 66 issues remained unchanged. Trading value reached ₱6.91 billion, with 638 million shares changing hands, a level that analysts described as subdued compared to recent averages.

Market participants are largely focusing on the diplomatic theater in Islamabad, Pakistan, where representatives from the United States (US) and Iran are scheduled to hold talks this weekend. The potential for a ceasefire has provided a fragile floor for equities, though the lack of a definitive resolution kept many traders on the sidelines.

Domestic market closed relatively flat as investor confidence remained fragile amid lingering uncertainty over the US-Iran negotiations, said Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development Corp.

He noted that many participants are maintaining short positions to hedge against geopolitical developments and persistent inflation risks.

Sectoral performance was split. The Services and Mining counters provided the necessary momentum to keep the main index in the green, effectively neutralizing losses across the majority of other sub-indices.

However, a weakening peso added a layer of complexity to the session, weighing on sentiment and preventing a more robust breakout.

Japhet Tantiangco, research manager at Philstocks Financial, said the local bourse initially took positive cues from an overnight rise on Wall Street.

Investors are clinging to hopes of a breakthrough in the Islamabad talks, yet the mixed results across the board suggest that caution remains the dominant strategy.

The week’s performance marked a technical recovery for the PSEi, which has now risen for two straight weeks following a month-long slump. Despite the modest daily gain, the underlying technicals suggest a market searching for a catalyst.

Michael Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., observed that while the three-day winning streak is encouraging, the immediate trajectory of the index will likely be dictated by the tone of the headlines emerging from the Middle East diplomatic efforts over the next 48 hours.