PSEi down on US debt ceiling standoff jitters
PSE headquarters in Taguig City —Contributed Photo
MANILA -The pessimism ruling over Wall Street due to the United States’ AAA rating being placed on negative rating watch amid the debt ceiling issue spilled over to the local bourse, pulling down the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) on Thursday.
The benchmark PSEi dropped by 0.84 percent, or 55.73 points, to close at 6,560.22 while the broader All-Shares index fell by 0.81 percent, or 28.57 points, to settle at 3,496.79.
“Fitch Ratings’ decision to place the US AAA rating on negative rating watch weighed further on the sentiment,” said Claire Alviar, Philstocks Financial Inc. assistant manager for research and online engagement.
“Given the ongoing concerns in the US, many investors were still on the sidelines,” she added.
Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales Luis Limlingan also said local shares were sold off given the worries on the ongoing negotiation over US debt ceiling—or the amount of money the Biden administration is allowed to borrow.
No exemptions
All subsectors were in the red, with the holding firm index booking the steepest decline at 1.12 percent.
About 715.82 million shares valued at P3.95 billion were traded. Losers led winners, 113-53, while 59 issues were unchanged.
Shares of SM Prime Holdings, the most actively traded, were flat at P34 each.
This was followed by Ayala Corp., down 1.14 percent to P691.50; SM Investments Corp., down 1.40 percent to P916; Jollibee Foods Corp., up 1.74 percent to P234; BDO Unibank Inc., down 0.74 percent to P135; and Century Pacific Food Inc., down 6.25 percent to P22.50.
Other active names were International Container Terminal Services Inc., down 0.70 percent to P200; Bank of the Philippine Islands, down 1.90 percent to P103; Ayala Land Inc., down 1.52 percent to P26; and PLDT Inc., down 2.46 percent to P1,228.
