The stock market declined Wednesday on fears of a global economic slowdown and the lingering US-China trade spat.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index slipped 19.02 points, or 0.2 percent, to 7,989.65 on a value turnover of P6.7 billion. Losers beat gainers, 120 to 77, with 57 issues unchanged.
Jollibee Foods Corp., the biggest fast-food chain, fell 2.5 percent to P317, while Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., which is into power generation and distribution, banking, consumer goods and infrastructure, dropped 1.5 percent to P65.
Bank of the Philippine Islands, the third-largest lender in terms of assets, lost 2 percent to P90.90, but Premiere Horizon Alliance Corp., which is into property development and mining, jumped 50 percent to P0.90
The rest of Asian markets fluctuated Wednesday following a negative lead from Wall Street as investors grow nervous about the chances of success in China-US trade talks ahead of a crunch meeting next week.
Hong Kong was up 0.1 percent in the afternoon having swung back and forth through the day, while Shanghai closed 0.1 percent higher and Tokyo ended slightly down.
Sydney was down 0.3 percent while Singapore shed 0.5 percent and Seoul added 0.5 percent. Wellington and Taipei were lower while Mumbai Bangkok and Jakarta inched up.
The mood remains cautious, with the rally that has characterized the start of the year stuttering owing to a slowing Chinese economy, a softer global outlook and other issues including Brexit and the US government shutdown, which shows no sign of ending soon.
US investors turned sellers on Tuesday after the Financial Times and CNBC said Washington had rejected Beijing’s offer of preparatory discussions ahead of the next round of high-level negotiations.
And while the White House denied the reports, observers said they highlighted the fragility of the talks. They also came a day after Bloomberg News said the two sides were struggling to reach agreement on the crucial matter of intellectual property, a key source of US anger.
Hopes that China and the US were on the right track have helped rally global markets in January, having suffered a torrid 2018.
But data showing China’s economy grew at its weakest pace in three decades added to fears it is heading for a hard landing, while Xi Jinping also showed signs of worrying about the effects of a slowdown in a speech to top provincial leaders this week.
“Investors obviously are still a little bit edgy and therefore we would expect periods of volatility to continue,” Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide Funds Group, said.
“As the headlines continue to get more nerve-wracking with regards to a global slowdown and trade wars and government shutdowns, it’s easy to spook investors, but we think those are temporary versus permanent.”
Oil prices were slightly higher after taking a hit Tuesday on lingering worries about the effect of a slowdown in the global economy, and particularly China, on demand. With AFP