MANILA, Philippines - Share prices ended the week with a rally Friday, thanks to aggressive buying by foreign investors.

Analysts said the stock market's strong gains reflect better investor confidence in the Philippine economy, and the bullish outlook for local companies.

The key Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index surged 68.16 points or 1.86% to 3,734.7, a new 32-month high.

Based on data from the PSE, the September 3 close was the highest since December 10, 2007, when the index stood at 3,675.52.

All subindices advanced, led by the holding firm sector, which rose 3%.

Gainers overwhelmed losers, 108 to 38, while 36 issues were unchanged.

Value turnover came in at a hefty P7.06 billion.

"We are seeing general optimism in global markets which helped push our stock market higher today. Foreign investors continued to be net buyers at P1.79 billion, accounting for 44.7% of total turnover," PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Val Antonio Suarez said.

Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. was the most actively traded stock by value, gaining as much as 3.7% before closing up 2.9% at P68.95.

Second most active was Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), which bucked the general uptrend with its 0.4% decline to P2,440. PLDT tracked the 2.9% fall in its American Depositary Receipts overnight.

Third most active was SM Investments Corp. It gained 1.9% to an all-time high of P493.

Other holding firms such as Ayala Corp. and JG Summit Holdings Inc. also posted strong gains.

Ayala jumped 4.9% to a 30-month high of P386.40 while JG Summit added 2.7% to a record high of P19.50.