Stocks end week slightly lower

The local stock market went on a holiday break Friday in observance of the Islamic “Feast of Sacrifice” or Eidul Adha, thus avoiding a regional downturn.

For the four-day trading week, the main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index shed 27 points or 0.5 percent to close at 5,405.16 on Thursday.

Foreign investors, however, took advantage of the pullback this week to pick up selective stocks, resulting in a net foreign buying position of P2.29 billion.

Elsewhere in the region Friday, stock market trading was mostly sluggish despite an overnight rebound in Wall Street sentiment.  Risk aversion increased as the third-quarter corporate reporting season started.

In the Philippines, investors who have made money from large caps this year are focusing more on third-liner or penny stocks. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Thursday slashed its key interest rates by another 25 basis points in a widely anticipated move that is seen prompting more investors to seek better yields from equities.

Meanwhile, next week is another shortened trading week as the nation pauses for the All Saints’ Day holiday. Doris C. Dumlao