PSEi inches lower as investors wait for catalysts

Philippine shares went down slightly on Wednesday as investors looked for new catalysts that would nudge the main index above the 6,500 level.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 0.52 points or a minute percentage to end at 6,520.75 on Wednesday, while the broader all shares index climbed by 1.70 points or 0.05% to close at 3,343.41.

“The local bourse saw a marginal decline… as more investors booked gains following the market’s rise in the past few days. Investors were also finding new catalysts to drive the market upwards,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Analyst Claire T. Alviar said in a Viber message.

Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limli-ngan said in a Viber message that the market declined as investors waited for more cues on interest rates from the US Federal Reserve.

“Philippine shares took a breather from the recent rally as investors look forward to more cues on the rate cuts from the Fed in the new year,” Mr. Limlingan said.

On its Dec. 13 meeting, the US central bank kept interest rates unchanged within the 5.25%-5.5% range, Reuters reported.

“On the data front, consumer confidence for December and existing home sales for November are due out on Dec. 20,” he added.

Sectoral indices were split on Wednesday. Financials dropped by 12.02 points or 0.69% to close at 1,726.21; industrials decreased by 38.32 points or 0.43% to 8,845.07; property declined by 4.10 points or 0.14% to 2,882.22.

Meanwhile, mining and oil climbed by 74.61 points or 0.78% to 9,568.89; holdings firms increased by 41.21 points or 0.64% to 6,394.13; and services rose by 4.89 points or 0.30%.

Value turnover went up to PHP 6.32 billion on Wednesday with 1.15 billion issues changing hands from the PHP 4.37 billion with 748.67 million shares on Tuesday.

advancers outnumbered decliners, 96 against 89, while 42 names ended unchanged.

Net foreign buying declined to PHP 166.8 million on Wednesday from PHP 394.99 million on Tuesday. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera