PSEi falls following typhoon, Wall Street’s drop

Philippine Stocks ended in the red on Thursday as trading resumed after Typhoon Carina (international name: Gaemi) hit the capital, and following Wall Street’s decline overnight.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 1.22% or 82.85 points to end at 6,670.27 on Thursday, while the broader all shares index fell by 0.87% or 31.67 points to finish at 3,606.81.

Financial markets were closed on Wednesday due to the typhoon.

“The local market dropped as investors tracked Wall Street’s sell-off overnight amid dismal second-quarter corporate results from the tech sector,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research and Engagement Officer Mikhail Philippe Q. Plopenio said in a Viber message. “Also, concerns over the economic damage to the country caused by Typhoon Carina weighed on the bourse.”

“Philippine shares followed the sentiment of regional equities dropping more than 1% after resuming trading following the suspension from Typhoon Carina,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan likewise said in a Viber message.

Asian shares were hammered on Thursday as a slump in global tech stocks sent investors fleeing into less risky assets, Reuters reported. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 1%, while Japan’s Nikkei tumbled 3.3%.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 lost 128.61 points or 2.31% to 5,427.13 points on Wednesday, while the Nasdaq lost 654.94 points or 3.64% to 17,342.41. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 504.22 points or 1.25% to 39,853.87.

“Investors also digested the government’s latest fiscal position data,” Mr. Plopenio added.

The National Government’s (NG) budget deficit narrowed by 7.24% year on year to PHP 209.1 billion in June from PHP 225.4 billion a year ago, Treasury data showed.

For the first six months, the NG’s budget gap widened by 11.2% to PHP 613.9 billion from PHP 551.7 billion a year ago.

The six-month deficit was 7.24% below the PHP 661.8-billion program for the period as revenues were better than expected.

All sectoral indices closed lower on Thursday. Mining and oil retreated by 3.78% or 330.37 points to 8,398.57; property lost 1.98% or 53.10 points to end at 2,628.72; services went down by 1.39% or 28.21 points to 1,998.30; holding firms dropped by 1.08% or 63.49 points to 5,779; financials decreased by 0.89% or 18.57 points to 2,064.61; and industrials declined by 0.43% or 39.32 points to 9,073.96.

Value turnover dropped to PHP 4.01 billion on Thursday with 594.95 million shares changing hands from the PHP 5.49 billion with 401.94 million issues traded on Tuesday.

Decliners overwhelmed advancers, 121 versus 59, while 54 names were unchanged.

Net foreign selling stood at PHP 205.72 million on Thursday versus the PHP 442.93 million in net buying seen on Tuesday. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave with Reuters