(File photo)
MANILA – Volatility caused the Philippines’ main equities index to finish the week in the red but the peso managed to finish sideways against the US dollar.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) lost 2.58 percent or 178.20 points to 6,731.25 points.
All the other counters also ended the trade in the red, with the All Shares down by 1.97 percent, or 72.34 points, to 3,605.14 points.
Property led the sectoral gauges in terms of losses after it fell by 3.66 percent and was trailed by Services, 2.47 percent; Industrial, 2.28 percent; Financials, 2.20 percent; Holding Firms, 1.73 percent; and Mining and Oil, 0.96 percent.
Volume was thin at 840.3 million shares amounting to PHP7.92 billion.
Decliners surpassed advancers at 122 to 64 while 46 shares were unchanged.
“Investors sold off to close the month of April as investors shifted their focus to the upbeat,” said Luis Limlingan, Regina Capital Development Corporation head of sales.
He cited a US government report about the unexpected contraction in the world’s largest economy’s output in the first quarter of 2022 at minus 1.4 percent.
However, he said, “some investors brushed off the economic contraction, citing the jump in prices and trade deficit as contributing the most to the decline.”
On the other hand, the local currency finished the day sideways against the US dollar at PHP52.19 from its PHP52.27 finish on Thursday.
It opened the day at PHP52.43, weaker than the previous session’s PHP52.15. It traded between PHP52.45 and PHP52.16, bringing the day's average to PHP52.335.
Volume totaled USD1.2 billion, lower than the USD1.6 billion the previous day. (PNA)
