PHILIPPINE stocks climbed for a sixth day, pushing the leading index to a record after the US added more jobs than expected, easing concern the Southeast Asian nation’s biggest overseas market will go into a recession.

“The US jobs data is helping avert apprehension of a global economic slump that will come about from a recession in the world’s biggest economy,’’ said Rico Gomez, who helps manage about $1 billion in assets at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) jumped to a record and Ayala Corp. led advances among the biggest companies. SM Investments Corp. rose for the fifth day after the company said it will group its property businesses under Shoemart Inc. Pilipino Telephone Corp. rose to its highest in almost 10 years on increased mobile-phone subscriptions.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index added 97.59, or 2.6 percent, to close at 3,873.50, surpassing the record close posted July 5. The measure gained 5.7 percent in the past five trading days.

PLDT, the nation’s biggest company, jumped P165, or 5.3 percent, to P3,265, its biggest gain since August. Ayala, the second-largest company by market value, rose P5, or 0.9 percent, to P580, after a two-day, 5-percent slump.

PLDT and Ayala, which owns the second-biggest mobile-phone company, the largest builder and No. 1 lender by market value, make up 37 percent of the 29-company Philippine Stock Exchange index. The measure has advanced 30 percent this year and has surged 34 percent since August 17 when it plunged to a seven-month low as a spreading US housing slump triggered a global credit crunch and doused appetite for riskier assets like equities.

“The strength in the US helped the market breakout of its resistance,’’ said April Lee-Tan, head of research at Manila-based online stock brokerage Citiseconline.com. “PLDT and other blue chips are rising sharply because these are the stocks one must own to be invested in the Philippines.’’

US stocks rose October 5, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to a record after the Labor Department said American payrolls increased by 110,000 jobs in September, beating the 100,000 jobs expected by economists in a Bloomberg survey. The prior month’s decrease of 4,000, which has been the first drop in four years, was also revised to a gain of 89,000.

The US buys almost a fifth of Philippine exports and provides half of the funds sent home by overseas Filipino workers. Exports account for two-fifths of the Philippine economy, while remittances contribute at least 10 percent, spurring Philippine consumer spending.

SM Prime Holdings Inc., the largest shopping-mall operator, climbed 25 centavos, or 2.1 percent, to P12. Petron Corp., the biggest oil refiner, added 40 centavos, or 6.9 percent, to P6.20. Ayala Land Inc., which makes about a third of its home sales to Filipinos working overseas and their families, rose 50 centavos, or 2.9 percent, to P17.75.

Shares worth P5.87 billion were traded, 4.3 percent more than the six-month daily average. Two stocks rose for each that fell in the broader market.

SM Investments, the holding company of the richest Philippine tycoon, Henry Sy, added P2.50, or 0.6 percent, to P412.50, extending a 12-percent climb in the past four trading days. The company said Monday that it will swap its 1.82 billion shares in SM Development Corp. (SMDC PM) for additional shares in Shoemart Inc., a company jointly owned by SM Investments and Sy’s family. SM Development, a builder of residential towers, advanced 20 centavos, or 4.5 percent, to P4.65 pesos, bringing this year’s gain to 111 percent.

Pilipino Telephone (PLTL PM), the third-largest mobile-phone operator and a unit of Smart Communications Inc., gained 50 centavos, or 6.7 percent, to P8, its highest close since November 1997. Pilipino Telephone said October 5 after trading closed that the company and Smart ended the third quarter with 28.3 mobile-phone users, compared with 27.1 million in June, and may end the year with 30 million. Smart is owned by PLDT.

Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., which also has investments in power and banks, rose 20 centavos, or 2.9 percent, to P7.20 after its shipping unit, Aboitiz Transport System Corp., acquired an additional ferry. Aboitiz Transport, which closed Monday unchanged at P1.46, said after trading October 5 that it acquired a ferry for $2.4 million, adding an 800-passenger capacity and 50 20-foot-equivalent unit cargo capacity.

Filinvest Development Corp., a builder that expanded into sugar, rose 20 centavos, or 3 percent, to P6.90. The company said October 5 after trading closed that it may bid for the government’s 60 percent stake in PNOC Energy Development Corp. PNOC Energy, the largest geothermal company, was unchanged at P7.70 after advancing 20 percent last week.

IPVG Corp., a software and Internet-content producer that is expanding into call centers, increased 60 centavos, or 6.6 percent, to P9.70, a two-month high. The company said it formed a venture with India’s Credence Analytics Pvt. Ltd. to sell outsourced treasury services to financial companies in both countries.

AFTER a year of consultations and deliberations, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) finally approved a new set of guidelines on the management of the trust fund of local preneed companies.

Pay-TV web site logs vital data for media, advertising planners

REGIONAL advertising agencies and clients gained access to www.thepowerofpaytv.com,  a web site created due to the changing shape of the broadcasting market.

A strong economy and an equally strong peso helped support Chemrez Technologies Inc. come up with a strong financial result in the first nine month s of the year.,

PHILIPPINE stocks climbed for a sixth day, pushing the leading index to a record after the US added more jobs than expected, easing concern the Southeast Asian nation’s biggest overseas market will go into a recession.