Peso's Depreciation Dampens Philippine Stock Market

MANILA, Philippines — The local stock market pulled back yesterday following Tuesday’s strong performance, with investor sentiment dampened by the continued depreciation of the peso. The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index tumbled by 0.67 percent or 40.66 points to end yesterday’s session at 6,053.23. The broader All Shares index also slipped by 0.31 percent or 10.58 points, settling at 3,352.61. Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital said the local index closed lower as the market underwent a correction following Tuesday’s strong buying activity. He said weakness was further driven by the continued depreciation of the peso, which weighed on investor sentiment. “Softer global markets added to the cautious tone, prompting investors to take a more defensive stance,” Limlingan said. All sectors were in the red, except for the industrial index, which posted a 0.38-percent jump. Services lost the most, declining by 1.46 percent. Total value turnover thinned to P5.69 billion from the previous day’s P10.47 billion. Decliners pummeled advancers, 101 to 79, while 65 issues were unchanged. The peso extended its record-breaking slide for a fourth straight trading session, weakening by 16.5 centavos to 62.565 yesterday from Tuesday’s previous record-low finish of 62.40. Data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed that the peso opened at 62.40, which was also its strongest level for the day. It weakened to as much as 62.69, its weakest intraday level on record, before recovering slightly toward the close. UnionBank chief economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion said the peso remained under pressure mainly because of developments overseas. “The primary drag on the peso remains the combination of higher global interest rates, a stronger dollar, elevated oil prices and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty,” Asuncion said.