Local stock index slips to 5,800 level

MANILA—The local stock market fell sharply on Friday, dragging the main index to the 5,800 level, as investors dumped large-cap stocks.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index shed 94.63 points or 1.59 percent to close at 5,842.88 as momentum remained weak. For the week, the index lost 105.05 points or 1.77 percent.

The day’s decline was led by holding firms (-2.56 percent) while the financial and industrial sectors likewise dropped by over 1 percent.

Joseph Roxas, president of Eagle Equities, said foreign investors were unloading index stocks.

There were twice as many decliners for every single gainer for the day. Turnover amounted to P5.6 billion.

Across the region, trading was mixed ahead of a release of a key US jobs data.