Philippine stocks dip over mixed news on global economy

MANILA, Philippines—Local share prices opened the week flat amid a mix of good and bad news abroad and the lack of new developments locally.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) slipped by a modest 2.96 points, or 0.07 percent, to close at 4,299.47 points on Monday, marking the benchmark’s third day of decline.

The broader all-share index fell by 0.07 percent, or 2 points, to 3,011.24 as all sub-indices, except for the service sector, closed in negative territory.

Financials led the fall, losing 0.43 percent, followed by holding firms, which declined 0.31 percent. Also in the red were industrial shares (0.21 percent), mining and oil (0.19 percent) and property (0.04 percent).

The services sector bucked the downtrend with an increase of 0.17 percent, driven by port giant International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICT), which rose 2.5 percent. The company’s stock was also the fifth-most actively traded issue for the day.

Value turnover nearly reached the P5-billion mark with 2.27 billion shares changing hands. The day saw decliners outnumbering advancers, 94-61, while 41 issues traded unchanged.

“Markets across Asia were in the red at the local close as the outlook dimmed after China signaled the prospects of an extended slide in global economies,” local brokerage firm Accord Capital Equities said.

The firm noted that there was some “slight optimism in Europe following the win of Conservatives in the recent elections,” but noted that the Greek debt problem still weighed heavily on investor sentiment.