Cooling inflation fails to motivate sluggish PSEi

MANILA  -The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) struggled on Wednesday despite fresh inflation data showing that consumer price increases slowed further.

The PSEi was down slightly by 0.03 percent, or 2.08 points, to 6,512.39 while the broader All Shares index slipped 0.08 percent, or 2.78 points, to 3,469.75.

Investors shrugged off government data showing inflation had eased for a fifth consecutive month in June to 5.4 percent.

PH inflation further eased to 5.4% in June

A bigger decline at the PSEi was also likely held back by index heavyweight Metro Pacific Investments Corp., which resumed trading a day after a consortium of buyers bumped up their tender offer by 12 percent to P5.20 per share. Metro Pacific was the top traded stock as it jumped nearly 4 percent to P4.98 per share.

Trading volume remained weak, with 522.37 million shares valued at P3.8 billion changing hands while net foreign selling hit P22.2 million, data from the stock exchange showed.

The financial and holding firm subsectors ended in positive territory while mining and oil, industrial, property and services retreated.

Other active names were Ayala Corp., down 1.25 percent to P630; BDO Unibank Inc., down 0.07 percent to P137.60; SM Investments Corp., down 0.64 percent to P932; and SM Prime Holdings Inc., down 0.15 percent to P33.65 per share. Ayala Land Inc. ended flat at P24.70; DigiPlus Interactive Corp., up 7.29 percent to 3.68; Bank of the Philippine Islands, up 1.12 percent to P108; International Container Terminal Services Inc., up 1.1 percent to P203; and Globe Telecom, up 0.74 percent to P1,762.

-CSN

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