Market falls; URC, Aboitiz Power rise

Stocks fell for a second day, tracking the movement of major Asian markets as investors felt discouraged by the lack of details on US President-elect Donald Trump’s economic plan.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, lost 57 points, or 0.8 percent, to close at 7,264.55 Thursday.  It was still up 6.2 percent this year.

The heavier index, representing all shares, fell 28 points, or 0.6 percent, to settle at 4,379.98, on a value turnover of P6 billion.  Losers outnumbered gainers, 113 to 69, while 61 issues were unchanged.

All six sectoral indices declined, while only three of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by food manufacturer Universal Robina Corp. which rose 1.8 percent to P174 and D&L Industries Inc. which gained 1.6 percent to P12.60.  Aboitiz Power Corp. put on 1 percent to close at P43.80.

Meanwhile, Tokyo tumbled more than one percent Thursday, while the dollar sank as investors were left deflated by a lack of economic detail from Donald Trump at his first post-election press conference.

Traders had hoped the real estate tycoon would flesh out some of his campaign promises such as tax cuts and infrastructure spending, but he gave very little away, fueling uncertainty about his aspiration to boost the US economy.

However, he did lash out at drugs companies for “getting away with murder” in offshoring production and overcharging, which in turn hammered the pharma sector across markets.

Trump also announced a plan to hand control of his business to his adult sons in a bid to avoid conflicts of interest, and angrily dismissed questions about his relationship with Russia and unsubstantiated claims Moscow has compromising information on him.

“Dealers were extremely discouraged by the lack of detail regarding the new administration’s economic plan, as the presser was more about extinguishing smouldering hot spots regarding conflict of interest and the Trump organization’s associations with Russia,” Stephen Innes, senior trader at Oanda, said in a note.

The disappointment saw traders shift out of the dollar towards the yen, which in turn dragged on Tokyo’s Nikkei. By the end of the day the index was down 1.2 percent. The dollar bought 114.40 yen.

The greenback has tumbled from highs around 118.60 yen touched in the wake of Trump’s election win, which had fueled hopes of a big-spending, tax-cutting program to boost the economy and in turn fan inflation that would lead to interest rate hikes.

The dollar also retreated against the euro and pound as well as emerging market currencies with the Australian dollar up 1.3 percent and South Korean won one percent higher.

“The market did have some hopes that Trump will give more details on his policies. The yen’s moves do reflect that disappointment,”Masakuni Fujiwara, chief executive officer at VistaMax Fund Advisors in Tokyo, told Bloomberg News.

And Michael McCarthy, Sydney-based chief market strategist at CMC Markets, added: “There is a growing fear that recent positive moves are based on bombast, and could unravel very quickly.”

While US markets ended on a high, most of their major Asian counterparts failed to follow suit, despite a positive start.

Hong Kong fell 0.6 percent in the afternoon following a five-day rally, while Shanghai closed 0.6 percent lower.

Sydney fell 0.1 percent. However, Seoul added 0.6 percent while Singapore also chalked up gains.

Pharmaceutical firms took a battering after Trump’s comments, in which he also said he would push to change the bidding procedures for drugs.

In Tokyo, Takeda dropped 2.61 percent and rival Astellas tumbled 4.19 percent, while Daiichi Sankyo eased 1.2 percent.

In Sydney, Mayne shed more than four percent and CSL lost 2.8 percent, while ScinoPharm was off almost one percent in Taipei.

The losses mirrored a sell-off in big-name firms in the US including Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer. With AFP, Bloomberg