MARKET value turnover of the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) went up 26 percent in April 2009 compared to the previous month, despite the volatility in capital markets worldwide.

In a report, PSE said the market’s value turnover in April increased to P138.09 billion from P109.96 billion in March. Total market value traded from January to April this year amounted to P378.13 billion.

In the PSE’s Trading Participants Ranking Report released recently, ATR KimEng Securities Inc. (ATRKE Securities) was the top broker of the month with P41.11 billion value turnover equivalent to 29.77 percent of the PSE’s total value turnover.

Foreign broker Deutsche Regis Partners was far second, with a share of 8.78 percent, followed by Philippines Equity Partners, Inc. with 7.51 percent.

For the four-month period from January to April this year, ATRKE Securities also ranked first overall among PSE’s trading, with a 16.38-percent share of the market’s total value turnover.

ATRKE Securities is the securities brokerage arm of ATR KimEng Financial Corp., a publicly-listed diversified financial services company with businesses in the capital markets, insurance, and real estate. Its wholly owned subsidiary, ATR KimEng Capital Partners Inc., is the country’s largest independent investment house.

The Group is principally involved in corporate finance and advisory services (equity IPOs and secondary offers, bond underwriting, mergers and acquisitions, debt restructuring); stockbrokering and equity research; life and general insurance underwriting and distribution; asset management (mutual funds and trust fund management); foreign exchange and fixed income broking; and real-estate investments.

Through its shareholder Kim Eng Holdings Ltd., a publicly listed company in Singapore, the Group enjoys equity distribution access throughout Southeast Asia, Europe and North America.