PSEi falls below 7,000

THE LOCAL stock barometer slid below 7,000 on Wednesday as a slump in global commodity prices battered regional markets.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) lost 124.32 points or 1.76 percent to close at 6,926.91, slipping for the third straight session. Elsewhere in the region, stock markets were likewise mostly lower, tracking the overnight decline in Wall Street alongside sluggish commodity prices.

All counters ended in the red, led by the services counter which faltered by 2.65 percent.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P7.62 billion. There were more than twice as many decliners (119) as advancers (54).

One big decliner among PSEi stocks was ICTSI, which slumped by 7.06 percent, seen reflective of concerns on the global economy given the port terminal operator’s exposure to emerging markets.

SM Prime and Metrobank were both down by over 4 percent while Globe Telecom, GTCAP, AC and EDC all declined by over 2 percent.

PLDT, URC, SMIC and JG Summit all closed over 1 percent lower.

ALI and BPI also contributed to the PSEi’s decline.

Outside of PSEi stocks, SBS slipped by 1.93 percent in heavy volume.

Among the few PSEi stocks that bucked the downturn were SMC (+0.91 percent) and AEV (+0.34 percent).

Meanwhile, investors found buying opportunities in non-PSEi stocks DoubleDragon (+9.12 percent) and Ionics (+6.41 percent) which both rose in heavy volume.