Market slips 0.18%

The local stock barometer slipped for the fifth straight session Tuesday, weighed down by a selldown on Gokongwei stocks.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index lost 13.89 points or 0.18 percent to close at 7,520.82 as foreign investors pared down their local equity holdings.

Elsewhere in the region, trading sentiment was mixed.

At the local market, the main index was dragged by industrial and holding firms while the financial, services, mining/oil and property counters all went up.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P7.17 billion.  There was P588 million in net foreign selling for the day.

Despite the PSEi’s decline, market breadth was positive as 96 advancers outnumbered 78 decliners while 51 stocks were unchanged.

The PSEi was led lower by JG Summit which fell by 3.24 percent while its subsidiaries RLC and URC slipped by 1.44 percent and 0.72 percent, respectively.

MPI also fell by 1.67 percent while Security Bank, LTG, AC and AEV also faltered.—Doris Dumlao-Abadilla