Stocks end week lower
The local stock barometer ended the week in a sluggish mood as fresh US-China trade jitters tempered risk-taking across the region.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell by 82.36 points, or 1.03 percent, to close at 7,908.89, in line with mostly weaker markets in the region.
The PSEi was weighed down most by the financial counter, which fell by 2.65 percent, while services slumped by 1.38 percent.
The industrial and mining/oil counters also slipped, while the holding firm and property firms slightly gained.
Value turnover was heavy at P16.39 billion, including block trades. There were 127 decliners that edged out 83 advancers, while 46 stocks were unchanged.
The PSEi was dragged lower by BDO, which fell by 4.98 percent, while PLDT also slid by 4.96 percent. GT Capital and Metrobank both fell by more than 2.9 percent.
SM Investments fell by 2.02 percent.
BPI, Petron, Ayala Land and Jollibee all lost 1 percent while ICTSI and JG Summit also slipped.
Outside of the PSEi, notable decliners included Xurpas, which sagged by 10.6 percent. PHA also tumbled by 7.64 percent.
On the other hand, AEV gained 5.52 percent, while Ayala Corp. added 3.78 percent. URC rose by 1.53 percent.
The day’s most actively traded stock was Bloomberry, which surged by 7.62 percent.
The last-minute surge in Bloomberry and the corresponding drop in Petron was due to the PSEi rebalancing that will take effect on Feb. 18. Bloomberry will rejoin the 30-member PSEi, replacing Petron.
“But the actual transactions [rebalancing] are always done at the close before the effectivity date. It surged because passive index funds had to buy Bloomberry at whatever one price [that’s why it’s done at the close] to be in line with the index come Monday. Not a lot of active funds were able to take profit and counter the temporary inflow in Bloomberry, hence it rose. Come Monday, however, expect Bloomberry to sharply drop and then normalize,” said Ron Acoba, chief investment strategist at equities research provider Trading Edge.
Another notable gainer is Villar family-led Vista Land, which surged by 26.98 percent.
