The local stock barometer and the peso declined Thursday after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) kept the Federal Reserve’s key rates steady although US monetary officials see possible hikes starting in 2023.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 1.23 percent, or 85.43 points, to 6,887.92 points.
This performance was mirrored by all other counters, with the All Shares down by 0.87 percent, or 36.84 points, to 4,184.96 points.
Property index posted the highest decline among the sectoral gauges after it fell by 2.56 percent.
It was trailed by the Industrial, 1.71 percent; Financials, 0.86 percent; Holding Firms, 0.55 percent; Mining and Oil, 0.47 percent; and Services, 0.21 percent.
Volume totaled nearly 3.3 billion shares amounting to PHP114.18 billion.
Decliners surpassed advancers at 129 to 76, while 41 shares were unchanged.
“Philippine shares sold on news and ahead of the FTSE (Financial Times Stock Exchange) rebalancing tomorrow after the FOMC last night,” said Luis Limlingan, Regina Capital Development Corporation head of sales.
Meanwhile, the peso weakened to 48.38 to a dollar from its 48.09 close on Wednesday.
It opened the day at 48.3 and traded between 48.455 and 48.28.
Average level for the day stood at 48.368.
Volume reached USD1.79 billion, up from the previous session’s USD1.15 billion.
Source: Philippines News Agency
