PSE Index Plummets

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index today plummeted to 6,329.19 points, down by 76.72 points or 1.20 percent, puncturing its support level at 6,350 points, signaling bearish sentiments as net foreign selling again was the day's trading mode.

Photo Insert: The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Index, August 14, 2023

The locals were again mostly absent from the market following the deadly cocktail of rising gasoline prices, the rise in the Fed reserve rate, and the projected inflation spike with rice prices seen to rise further, and the growth rate leaving much to be desired.

Only the mining and oil index bucked the trend as Semirara Mining rose by a peso to P31 on trades of P258 million to come up as the fourth most traded stock in trading that saw blue chips going up in the early going before declining on a sell-down as foreign selling overwhelmed foreign buying, P 2.19 billion to P1.83 billion for net selling of P361 million.

Locals accounted for just half a billion in trades. The financials declined by 0.47 percent, industrials by 0.24 percent, holding firms by 1.58 percent, services by 1.30 percent, and property by 2.13 percent.

SM Prime was the most active stock with trades of P423 million, of which p213 million was net foreign selling, as it went down by 4.29 percent to P30.15, a loss of P1.35 while Ayala Land emerged unscathed, ending the day unchanged at P29.05 on trade of P370 million.

ACEN Corp made up the third most active stock rising by 4 centavos to P5.15 even with net foreign selling of P162 million out of its total trades of P335 million. There were 45 gainers, 118 losers, and 45 shares unchanged with total trades of P4.57 billion.

Among the gainers were Metrobank, which rose by 10 centavos to P57.30 on trades of P83 million with net foreign buying of P28 million, Bank of PI, up by 10 centavos to P113.90 with trades of P255 million, of which P43.9 million was net foreign buying, and Metro Pacific, up by 5 centavos to P5.05 with P14 million in net foreign buying out of its P188 million in trades.

The losers included PLDT, down by P40 to P1,275, Jollibee Foods, down by 20 centavos to P247.60, Ayala Corp, down by P11 to P593, BDO Unibank down by P1.70 to P141.80, market bellwether SM Investments, down P15.50 to P867, ICTSI, down by P3.20 to P201, JG Summit down by 5 centavos to P38.95, and Monde Nissin, down by 29 centavos to P7.29.

Globe Telecom was unchanged at P1,850.

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