_003A The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) slipped on Thursday due in part to developments in the US but the peso managed to end the trade sideways against the greenback.
The main equities gauge shed 1.57 percent, or 107.48 points, to 6,727.93 points.
All Shares went down by 1.05 percent, or 44.46 points, to 4,183.02 points.
Most of the sectoral indexes also tracked the PSEi, led by the Holding Firms, which fell by 1.84 percent.
It was followed by the Services index, 1.50 percent; Financials, 1.44 percent; Industrial, 1.02 percent; and Property, 1.01 percent.
Only the Mining and Oil posted gains during the day rising 0.91 percent.
Volume reached 982.45 million shares amounting to PHP4.89 billion.
Losers led gainers at 121 to 70, while 57 shares were unchanged.
Luis Limlingan, Regina Capital Development Corporation head of sales, attributed the PSEi’s performance partly to the start of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s two-day testimony before the US Congress wherein he underscored the “uneven” economic recovery because of, among others, the housing prices.
He said “discussions are ongoing regarding the eventual unwinding of the Fed’s asset-purchase program.”
Meanwhile, the peso finished the day at 50.22 compared to its 50.3 finish a day ago.
It opened the day at 50.23 and traded between 50.42 and 50.09.
This brought the day’s average to 50.279.
Volume totaled USD1.41 billion, higher than the previous day’s USD1.17 billion.
Source: Philippines News Agency
