PSEi in worst single-day performance since 2016

The local stock barometer pulled back sharply on Monday, weighed down by the bloodbath across regional markets as well as local corporate earnings jitters.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 239.91 points or 2.95 percent to close at 7,890.02, slipping below bull territory as foreign investors dumped local blue chips. This was it worst single-day performance since 2016.

The market was dragged down by around P1.2 billion worth of net foreign selling.

Manny Cruz, chief strategist at Papa Securities, said Philippine equities would trade with a downward bias this week amid continued weakness in Wall Street. He noted that a more hawkish-than-expected US Federal Reserve policy outlook and US President Donald Trump’s new trade spars with China would gnaw on sentiment.

The day’s most actively traded company was Jollibee, which shed 4.26 percent. The fast-food giant saw a 34.4-percent year-on-year drop in attributable net profit in the first semester to P2.66 billion. For the second quarter alone, its net profit slid 50.2 percent year-on-year to P1.1 billion due to losses booked by American hamburger chain Smashburger and extraordinary manufacturing expenses related to Red Ribbon’s transition to a new plant.

By counter, the PSEi was weighed down most by the property counter, which slumped by 3.46 percent.

The financial, industrial and holding firms all declined by over 2 percent, while the services counter lost 1.81 percent.

The mining/oil counter bucked the day’s downturn, rising by 1.16 percent.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P6.37 billion. There were 149 decliners that edged out 55 advancers, while 47 stocks were unchanged. —DORIS ABADILLA