PSEi erases previous gains as caution returns

The stock barometer fell sharply on Friday as lackluster regional markets amplified cautious investor sentiment at the local market.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) slid by 116.64 points or 1.8 percent to close at 6,370.87.

The PSEi gave up the gains seen in previous days, closing flat from last week’s finish of 6,378.07.“Investors sold ahead of the weekend and to close the month of April, as many refocused on the US after another round of positive earnings and the release of the first-quarter GDP (gross domestic product),” said Luis Gerardo Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development.

The United States’ first quarter GDP grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.4 percent, nearly reclaiming the level of output last seen in late 2019 before the pandemic reached their economy.

At the local market, all counters declined except for the mining/oil counter, which added 2.08 percent. —DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA