PSEi closes down 0.1%

The local stock barometer faltered yesterday, reversing early gains brought about by upbeat US consumer confidence data.

The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index shed 7.46 points or 0.1 percent to close at 7,324, defying mostly upbeat regional markets.

“Philippine stocks failed to match US stocks rebounding from their recent lull to close comfortably higher on the back of a blowout reading on consumer sentiment (the best since December 2000), the fastest housing price growth since mid-2014, a comment from Fed vice chair Stanley Fischer (projecting two more interest rate hikes this 2017), rallying crude prices and a new all-time high for Apple,” said Luis Gerardo Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development.

The Dow Jones Industrial Index gained 150.52 points or 0.73 percent to close at 20,701.50 overnight.

The upbeat trading in Wall Street modestly perked up the local market in morning trade but all gains were erased in the afternoon.

The main index was weighed down by the financial, industrial, mining/oil and property counters while the holding firm and services counters firmed up.

Value turnover for the day was relatively heavy at P14.28 billion.

Market breadth was negative, with 107 decliners edging out 79 advancers while 46 stocks were unchanged.

Investors sold down shares of AGI, which fell by 2.05 percent while BDO, URC and LTG all declined by over 1 percent.

Ayala Land, Aboitiz Power, Semirara, JG Summit and PLDT also declined.

Jollibee gained 3.01 percent. In a disclosure, the homegrown fast-food giant said that for the first quarter of 2017, its brands in the Philippines would likely continue to have higher gross profit margins versus the same period last year. Jollibee added that it was aiming to at least maintain last year’s gross profit margins this 2017.

SM Investments, DMCI Holdings and Globe Telecom all rose by more than 1 percent while Metro Pacific, Ayala Corp., Security Bank, Metrobank and Megaworld also contributed gains.