Stocks end flat

The local stock market was flat Friday, the last trading day before the so-called “ghost month,” alongside lackluster regional markets.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 0.34 point to close at 6,889.55. For the week, the local stock barometer was up by a modest 36.48 points.

By counter, the day’s decline was led by the financial, mining/oil and property sub-indices while the industrial, holding firm and services counters firmed up.

Value turnover for the day amounted to P6.8 billion. Market breadth was negative, with 78 advancers being eclipsed by 84 decliners while 64 stocks were unchanged. There was P324.52-million worth of net foreign selling for the day.

The day’s most actively traded stock was Metrobank, whose share price fell by 1.15 percent following the announcement that it would raise up to P20 billion from the issuance of long-term negotiable certificates of deposit. This immediately followed the bank’s P6.5-billion issuance of debt notes qualifying as Tier 2 or supplementary capital.

The index was also weighed down by BDO (-1.1 percent), Philex (-2.2 percent) and Megaworld (-1.35 percent). Ayala Corp., Ayala Land and DMCI also contributed to the day’s decline.

On the other hand, Globe (+2.21 percent) and ICTSI (+1.26 percent) helped pare down the PSEi’s decline. AGI, PLDT, SM Investments Corp., URC, Energy Development Corp., Bloomberry, First Gen and JG Summit also gained.

This year, the ghost month period will begin on July 27 (Sunday) through Aug. 24. The “ghost month” refers to the seventh month of the lunar calendar, which, to the Chinese, is considered an unlucky period to start a business, get married or engage in a new investment. It is also a period when trading volume thins out across global stock markets since this is the time when Western fund managers usually take their summer vacation. Doris C. Dumlao