US inflation unsettles PSEi soon after GDP letdown

MANILA  -The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) extended losses on Friday as investors digested US government data showing inflation tilted in July but core prices remained relatively stable.

The PSEi slid 0.68 percent, or 43.75 points, to 6,405.91 while the broader All Shares index was down 0.44 percent, or 15.19 points, to 3,430.19.

The latest US inflation data showed prices rising 3.2 percent in July, which was faster than the 3-percent increase in June. Major US stock market indices closed in positive territory overnight as core inflation remained at 0.2 percent.

Local stocks, however, continued to underperform a day after the government announced disappointing economic growth figures for the second quarter of the year. All PSE subsectors, save for mining and oil, closed lower on Friday while a total of 445.66 million shares valued at P3.83 billion changed hands. Foreigners were net sellers of an amount worth P298.9 million, data from the stock exchange showed.

SM Prime Holdings Inc. was the top traded stock as it slipped 1.25 percent to P31.50 per share.