PSEi slips below 7,200

The local stock barometer slipped below the 7,200 mark yesterday as investors weighed the stream of local third-quarter earnings.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) slipped by 13.6 points or 0.19 percent to 7,192.12, defying the upswing seen in some other markets elsewhere in the region.

Most counters ended lower except for the services sub-index, which firmed up as shares of PLDT (+0.27 percent) stabilized after last week’s selldown arising from a downgrade in full-year earnings outlook.

The index was weighed down by property stocks Ayala Land and Megaworld, which both fell more than 1 percent. Bloomberry also lost 0.84 percent as expectations of the gaming stock joining the MSCI index in the latest rebalancing did not happen.

BDO, Aboitiz Power, URC and Ayala Corp. also weighed down the PSEi.

Outside of PSEi stocks, there was profit-taking on DNL (2.28 percent). Subsidiary Chemrez announced yesterday its intention to delist as a recent tender offer by DNL resulted in a reduction in public float below the 10-percent minimum required for continuing listing.

On the other hand, GT Capital and BPI gained more than 1 percent while Alliance Global and ICTSI also rose. Vista Land (+1.61 percent) and Security Bank (+1.31 percent) advanced in heavy volume. Security Bank was included in the MSCI’s small cap index in the latest rebalancing. Doris C. Dumlao