PSEi dips amid tariffs, peso travails
A mix of tariff uncertainties and a weakening peso dragged the local bourse below 6,300 on Thursday as investors tried to take cover from market volatility.
By the end of the session, the main share Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) lost 0.66 percent, or 41.93 points, to close at 6,295.55
The broader All Shares Index likewise shed 0.67 percent, or 25.11 points, to end at 3,723.14.
A total of 2.4 billion shares worth P7.33 billion changed hands, stock exchange data showed. Foreigners also opted to sell their stocks, with net outflows totaling P24.38 million.
Japhet Tantiangco, research head at Philstocks Financial Inc., said the decline was still due to uncertainties over the United States’ tariff policies.
The peso’s depreciation also dampened sentiment. The local currency closed at 57.29 against the US dollar on Thursday, from 57.085 the previous day as June inflation ended higher-than-expected in the United States.
Top-traded stock DigiPlus Interactive Corp. suffered its worst single-day performance, diving by 29.96 percent to P19.54 per share as investors became more wary of mounting calls for an online gambling ban.
It was followed by International Container Terminal Services Inc., up 0.45 percent to P445; SM Prime Holdings Inc., down 1.28 percent to P23.20; BDO Unibank Inc., up 0.2 percent to P148.90; and SM Investments Corp., down 1.83 percent to P829.50 each.
Others were Bank of the Philippine Islands, down 0.58 percent to P119; Ayala Land Inc., down 0.76 percent to P26.15; Bloomberry Resorts Corp., down 5.62 percent to P4.03; Jollibee Foods Corp., unchanged at P219; and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co., down 0.28 percent to P71.45.
