Traders await remittances data, Fed hints
Traders would likely wait this week for cues on what the American central bank’s next policy move will be.
This, especially after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) rate cut failed to lift the Philippine bourse last week.
Trading platform 2TradeAsia.com said in an advisory over the weekend that investors would be anticipating the speech of US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday. Powell is expected to give more clarity on their policy stance.
The BSP typically mirrors the policy move of the Fed.
A pillar of the economy
Locally, traders are likewise looking forward to remittances data for August. Along with foreign exchange inflows and investments, this data historically plays a key role in boosting the Philippine economy.
This, after the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) had a challenging week. The PSEi ended last Friday down by 1.16 percent week-on-week to 6,037.
The benchmark index briefly broke through 6,100 after investors partook in some bargain hunting. However, its stay in the green territory was short-lived.
Despite the BSP opting to cut rates a fourth time to 4.75 percent last week, analysts said sentiment was still impacted by flood control woes.
At the same time, the local currency’s continued depreciation affected overall confidence. The peso is trading at more than 58 against the US dollar.
2TradeAsia.com expects the index to move between 6,000 and 6,200 next week.
