Philippine market rallies anticipating Estrada resignation

At the stroke of twelve noon, as the closing bell was ringing at the Philippine Stock Exchange, applause from brokers reverberated throughout the trading floor in Makati: The day's final transaction had lifted the Philippine Composite Index (Phisix) to 1,500.10, up 212.25 (+16.48%, the largest single-day gain ever), supported by a strong trading volume of Ps3.8 billion ($74.8 million).