Philippine stocks closed below the 6,000 level Tuesday, declining for fourth straight trading day as investors continued to assess US President Donald Trump’s new tariffs while awaiting other catalysts.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index dropped 49.37 points, or 0.82 percent, to close at 5,987.75, while the broader all-shares index slipped by 10.24 points, or 0.28 percent, to settle at 3,607.03.
Aside from new tariffs announced by Trump, Philstocks Financial Inc. research analyst Claire Alviar said investors were looking ahead to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ policy meeting slated later this week.
Except for the banking sector which rose 1.26 percent, all other sectors ended in the red during the session.
The property sector suffered the biggest decline at 2.81 percent, followed by the services sector, which went down by 2.23 percent.
The value turnover reached P5.27 billion.
Alviar said net foreign selling also further weighed on the market, recording a net outflow of P655.18 million.
BDO Unibank Inc. emerged as the top gainer among index members, advancing by 3.83 percent to P140.80, while Emperador Inc. posted the steepest decline, dropping by 7.05 percent to P12.66.
Asian markets also struggled on Tuesday as traders keep a nervous eye on Donald Trump’s next moves after he signed off on tariffs for steel and aluminum imports and warned of more measures to come.
The US president has lived up to his campaign pledges to resume his hardball trade diplomacy to extract concessions on a range of issues, including commerce, immigration and drug trafficking.
While the moves have jolted sentiment, equities have held up since Trump took office, with analysts saying measures have so far been less severe than feared.
Still, caution looms over trading floors as dealers brace for the next announcement out of the White House, with Maurice Obstfeld, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, saying “the degree of uncertainty about trade policy has basically exploded”.
The latest US duties will take effect on March 12.
“Today, I’m simplifying our tariffs on steel and aluminum,” Trump said in the Oval Office on Monday as he signed off on them. “It’s 25 percent without exceptions or exemptions.”
He also signaled he would look at additional tariffs on automobiles, pharmaceuticals and computer chips.
Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets, said: “These expanding trade actions beyond previous threats to Canada, Mexico and China are leading to potential new import restrictions and retaliation, signaling more bouts of volatility for investors.
“Tariffs are being used not just to tax imports but also as tools for national security, economic leverage and revenue generation, indicating a shift towards long-term economic policy rather than short-term trade disputes.”
All three main indexes started the week on the front foot thanks to a rally in tech firms.
But Asia struggled to maintain its momentum from Monday, with Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Mumbai, Jakarta and Manila falling.
Seoul, Wellington, Bangkok and Taipei rose with London and Paris, though Frankfurt dipped. Sydney was flat.
The uncertainty fueled by Trump’s moves has pushed safe-haven gold ever higher. On Monday, it broke above $2,900 for the first time. It extended gains Tuesday to hit a new peak above $2,942.
Fears that Trump’s tariffs, along with tax cuts and deregulation, will reignite inflation and force the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates elevated have sent the dollar up against most of its peers.
Readings on consumer and producer price indexes this week will provide a fresh snapshot of inflation, while Fed boss Jerome Powell is also due to give depositions to US lawmakers.
Both will be pored over for an idea about the bank’s plans for rates, with forecasts for two cuts at most this year. With AFP