Stocks retreated amid thin trading Friday, after blue-chip companies announced slower-than-expected profit growth in the first half and as global investors digest news about Bank of England’s policy easing.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, shed 8 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 7,970.35 Friday. Despite the loss, the bellwether was still up 14.6 percent since the start of the year.
The broader all-share index gained 10 points, or 0.2 percent, to settle at 4,740.95, on a value turnover of P6.6 billion. Advancers outnumbered gainers, 102 to 84, while 47 issues were unchanged.
Ten of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by restaurant chain operator Max’s Group Inc. which climbed 7.9 percent to P31.30 and poultry producer Vitarich Corp. which advanced 6 percent to P1.60.
Chemical company D&L Industries Inc. gained 5.4 percent to P10.54, while property developer Megaworld Corp. rose 2.6 percent to P5.19.
Meanwhile, most Asian markets rose Friday while the pound was steady after the Bank of England announced a post-Brexit interest rate cut and surprise stimulus, as traders awaited the release of key US jobs data.
Regional investors pressed on with Thursday’s rally after the British central bank met expectations by cutting borrowing costs for the first time in seven years, to a record low of 0.25 percent.
While the move had been widely tipped, BoE policymakers also unveiled an emergency package worth up to £170 billion ($223 billion), including £60 billion for more bond-buying, or quantitative easing (QE).
The bank had flagged a rate cut after Britain’s shock vote on June 23 to leave the European Union, which it said would hit the country’s economy. As such, it slashed its growth outlook for next year and 2018.
The news sent sterling plunging Thursday to $1.3114 in New York, from around $1.33 earlier in Asia. In afternoon Tokyo trade Friday it was at $1.3128.
But while the pound tanked, European markets rallied, with London’s FTSE 100 adding 1.6 percent.
And the positive sentiment flowed through to Asia, where Hong Kong was up 1.3 percent in the afternoon, while Sydney closed up 0.4 percent and Seoul added 0.9 percent, Wellington put on 0.1 percent and Taipei 0.8 percent. with AFP, Bloomberg