PSEi on a roller-coaster ride

The local stock barometer went on a roller-coaster ride on Wednesday, retesting 8,000 in intra-day trade but ended up reversing early gains.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index lost 33.95 points or 0.43 percent to close at 7,872.65. It hit as high as 8,032.91 but closed at the intra-day low.

This indicates lack of conviction for the local stock index to stay afloat the 8,000 mark. The local stock market likewise bucked the upswing seen in most regional markets.

The day’s decline was led by holding firms, whose sub-index fell by 1.12 percent. The industrial and services counters also slipped.

On the other hand, the financial, mining/oil and property counters firmed up.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P7.03 billion. Despite the PSEi’s decline, there were 99 advancers that outnumbered 92 decliners while 55 stocks were unchanged.

Domestic investors were the ones dumping local stocks as there was net foreign buying for the day amounting to P500.83 million.

The PSEi was weighed down by the decline of Megaworld and Jollibee, which both fell by over 2 percent while SM Investments fell by over 1 percent.

Metrobank, Ayala Corp., AGI, Semirara, JG Summit, Puregold and BPI also declined.

Outside of the PSEi, one notable decliner was Waterfront, which lost 3.62 percent in relatively heavy trade.

On the other hand, ALI bucked the day’s downturn, gaining 2.2 percent. BDO and URC gained over 1 percent while GT Capital and LTG also firmed up.

Notable gainers outside the PSEi included Vitarich and EastWest Bank, which rose by 6.05 percent and 2.49 percent, respectively.

East West reported on Wednesday a 60 percent jump in first semester net profit to P2.5 billion.