Delta variant anxiety sends PSEi skidding to 6,800

The local stock barometer fell to the 6,800 mark on Friday as concerns on the more contagious Delta variant dampened investor sentiment across the region.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 90.07 points or 1.3 percent to close at 6,834.92, dragged down by an increase in foreign selling of local equities.

Unable to stay afloat the 7,000 mark, the index shed a total of 167.34 points or 2.39 percent for the week.

Apart from lingering pandemic jitters, investors also priced in the latest pronouncements from the US Federal Reserve (Fed), although most analysts don’t expect a tapering of its bond purchases until late this year. “Philippine shares continued to weaken as the market perceived the just-released US Federal Reserve minutes as dovish,” said Luis Gerardo Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development.

“Meanwhile, investors repositioned back into the US as the JOLTS (Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey) job opening climbed to a record high of 9.209 million in May,” he added.

At the local market, all counters ended lower. The financial, holding firm, services, mining/oil and property counters all declined by over 1 percent.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P8.42 billion. There was P1.13 billion worth of net foreign outflow from the market.

Decliners overwhelmed advancers, 153 to 59, while 43 stocks were unchanged.

Investors sold down shares of Jollibee, which lost 3.43 percent, while ICTSI, Metrobank and Megaworld all fell by close to 3 percent.

BDO, Ayala Corp., Security Bank, JG Summit, GT Capital, Meralco and MPIC all lost over 2 percent.

SM Prime, the day’s most actively traded company, declined by 1.64 percent.

Ayala Land, SM Investments, PLDT and Globe Telecom all slipped by less than 1 percent.

On the other hand, BPI and URC both advanced by over 1 percent.

Notable gainers outside the PSEi included Monde Nissin and AC Energy, which rose by 1.8 percent and 1.05 percent, respectively.

—Doris Dumlao-Abadilla