Philippine stocks inch up in cautious trade on Trump jitters

Philippine stocks managed to close higher on Tuesday even as the market mostly moved sideways due to lingering jitters caused by the Trump administration’s trade policies.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rose by 0.12% or 7.59 points to end at 6,145.59, while the broader all shares index inched up by 0.18% or 6.83 points to close at 3,652.14.

“The gains are attributed to appreciation of corporate fundamentals,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message. “The local market moved sideways for the trading day, however, reflecting investors cautiousness amid lingering uncertainties connected to the US’ trade policies and its impact on the global economy.”

“Philippine shares managed to eke out minor gains once again as the market brushed off President Donald J. Trump’s renewed attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell… The Philippine market posted modest gains as investors resumed bargain hunting, supported by optimism around strong corporate fundamentals and confidence in the local economy’s ability to weather external risks, including US tariff pressures,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan added in a Viber message.

Asian stocks battled to hold ground on Tuesday after a furious flight from US assets undermined Wall Street and the dollar, while concerns about the independence of the Federal Reserve piled fresh pressure on Treasuries, Reuters reported.

Relatively limited losses in Asia did spark talk that funds could be reallocating money to equities in the area, though the impact of tariffs on economic growth remained a major drag.

Mr. Trump’s increasingly vocal attacks on Mr. Powell for not cutting interest rates saw Wall Street indexes shed around 2.4% on Monday and the dollar hit three-year lows. The fallout from Wall Street still only saw Japan’s Nikkei ease a slim 0.2%, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan held steady.

Back home, almost all sectoral indices closed higher on Tuesday. Mining and oil went up by 1.81% or 180.66 points to 10,125.58; property increased by 0.84% or 18.47 points to 2,211.55; holding firms climbed by 0.36% or 18.28 points to 5,081.63; industrials inched up by 0.01% or 1.53 points to 8,708.17; and services edged up by 0.01 point to 1,917.05.

Meanwhile, financials declined by 0.21% or 5.13 points to 2,420.97.

“Universal Robina Corp. was the top index gainer, climbing 2.82% to PHP 71. Jollibee Foods Corp. was the worst index performer, dropping 3.17% to PHP 226.40,” Mr. Tantiangco said.

Value turnover rose to PHP 4.84 billion on Tuesday with 593.06 million shares traded from the PHP 4.56 billion with 1.05 billion issues exchanged on Monday.

Advancers bested decliners, 95 versus 83, while 52 names were unchanged.

Net foreign selling declined to PHP 38.76 million on Tuesday from PHP 46.86 million on Monday. —  R.M.D. Ochave with Reuters