Article by:
Joann Villanueva
MANILA – Military operations in the Middle East that continue to push global oil prices up remain the primary factor for the negative close of the local bourse’s main index on Thursday, and the peso weakened further against the US dollar.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 0.73 percent to 6,113.58 points, and the broader All Shares by 0.66 percent to 3,405.40 points.
Only the Holding Firms index gained during the day after rising by 1.33 percent.
The Services index, meanwhile, led the sectoral gauges that closed in the negative territory during the day after it fell 3.28 percent, followed by Mining and Oil, 2.27 percent; Industrial, 0.37 percent; Financials, 0.35 percent; and Property, 0.25 percent.
Volume reached 1.05 billion shares, amounting to PHP8.4 billion.
Decliners led advancers at 125 to 60, while 65 shares were unchanged.
“The local market pulled back as worries over the Middle East conflict and its impact on oil prices dominated sentiment again. This comes after Iran warned of oil hitting USD200 per barrel amid its war with the US,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. said in a market report.
The report added that “the peso’s weakness also weighed on the local bourse.”
The local currency again ended weaker against the US dollar after finishing the day at 59.38 from 59.17 a day ago.
It opened the day down at 59.32 from the previous session’s 58.88. The peso traded between 59.3 and 59.65, resulting in an average of 59.53.
Volume declined to USD1.92 billion from Wednesday’s USD2.01 billion. (PNA)
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