spot_img
28.6 C
Philippines
Friday, March 29, 2024

Stocks sink; PLDT, Metrobank decline

- Advertisement -

Stocks tumbled Wednesday, taking its cue from the rest of the Asian markets after a heavy sell-off in New York and Europe.

A plunge in a gauge of Chinese factory activity fueled fresh fears about the world’s number two economy and the global outlook Wednesday, sending Asian stocks falling.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index sank 124.32 points, or 1.8 percent, to 6,926.91 on a value turnover of P7.6 billion. Losers overwhelmed gainers, 119 to 54, with 37 issues unchanged.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., the biggest telecommunications firm, lost 1.7 percent to P2,264, while rival Globe Telecom Inc. dropped 2.8 percent to P2,454.

Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., the largest lender in terms of assets, declined 4.2 percent to P80.05, while SM Prime Holdings Inc. of retail tycoon Henry Sy tumbled 4.8 percent to P19.90.

- Advertisement -

International Container Terminal Services Inc., the biggest port operator, sank 7.1 percent to P79.

Meanwhile, emerging market currencies—already under pressure from an expected US interest rate rise and weak growth—also took a battering as investors rushed into lower-yielding, or safer, assets such as the yen. Oil prices eased.

The losses extended a downward spiral across the world as dealers fret over the state of the global economy, with a US recovery offset by China’s weakness, while Japan and the eurozone also struggle.

Traders are also watching Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the United States, where he pledged not to push down the value of the yuan to boost exports.

On Wednesday Hong Kong and Shanghai lost more than two percent after China’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) of manufacturing activity for September came in at a six-and-a-half-year low and showed the sector contracted further. With AFP

- Advertisement -

LATEST NEWS

Popular Articles