EMIL ONGCHUAN’S restaurant in Manila had to shut most of its operations during the regional lockdown. With little revenue coming in, the 29-year-old started investing in the stock market to make more money.

After opening an account with COL Financial Group Inc., the newbie trader combed through online forums for tips on how to trade and read financial statements. Like him, many in the Philippines are taking up equity trading for the first time as social-distancing rules keep them at home.

At AAA Southeast Equities Inc., the number of customers opening accounts has doubled since the lockdown started in the Philippines’ main Luzon island in mid-March, president William Matthew Cabangon said. Conrado Bate, the chief executive officer of COL Financial, one of the most popular online brokerage platforms in the country, said he’s seen a “significant” increase in retail investors activating dormant accounts and topping up investments.

“People are stuck at home, and the stock market is one of the few things that remain open,” Cabangon said. “When they hear that the stock market is falling, they get curious.”

Unfazed with a 27 percent tumble in the benchmark Philippine equity index that’s turned it into one of the world’s worst this year, local investors are jumping in to ride what they hope will be a strong rebound, even as foreign funds flee. Valuations have become cheaper, about a quarter below their five-year average.

“This is the opportunity many people are waiting for,” Bate said.

Ongchuan began by investing 3,000 pesos (US$60) in March, buying stocks in builders Ayala Land Inc. and SM Prime Holdings Inc. after the lockdown shut their malls and sent their shares crashing. As he grows more comfortable with the market, he plans to raise that amount to more than 100,000 pesos.

Equity trading has surged since mid-March, with the number of shares in the Philippine Stock Exchange Index changing hands jumping by 47 percent from the average in the previous year — more than the 32 percent increase in volume for companies in the regional MSCI Asia Pacific Index, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

(SD-Agencies)