By Leslie Venzon
MANILA, (PNA) –- The Philippine stock market tumbled on Wednesday along with other Asian bourses, weighed down by International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) reduced global growth forecasts.
The barometer Philippine stock exchange index (PSEi) ended its six-day rally, losing 77.11 points or 1.19 percent to 6,377.75 from previous day’s 6,454.86.
Banco de Oro Capital president Eduardo Francisco considers Wednesday’s slump just a “minor volatility”.
There is no major news or anything that is affecting us,” Francisco said, but noted that the slight decline was somehow good for the market.
“We are still more expensive than our neighbours. So the more we go up and others are going down, the gap widens,” he added.
But Francisco believes that that local share prices can still return to 6,700 to 6,800 levels until year-end.
He said the latest credit ratings upgrade gained by the Philippines from Moody’s Investors Service would encourage more people to invest in the local equities market.
This, even amid IMF’s reduced global economic growth forecasts for this and next year on slower expansion in emerging economies.
In Wednesday’s trading, all counters were in the negative territory, led by services and holding firms that fell 1.87 percent and 1.54 percent.
Volume of transactions was thin at 876.24 million shares valued at P17.63 billion.
Decliners won gainers, 97 to 48, while 41 issues were unchanged.
The day’s biggest losers were led by MJCI Investments Inc., Chemical Industries of the Philippines, Inc., A Brown Company Inc., Anglo Philippine Holdings Corp. and DFNN Inc.