By Jenniffer B. Austria and Thony Rose Lesaca
Philippine stocks closed sharply lower Thursday following a sell-off in U.S. markets as the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged and crude prices spiked due to escalating conflict in the Middle East.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index lost 36.83 points, or 0.61 percent, to close at 6,018.62. The broader all-shares index slipped 18.69 points, or 0.56 percent, to 3,344.87.
The index hit an intraday low of 5,934.68 after the peso breached P60 pesos against the dollar, closing at P60.10 as oil prices rose following attacks on energy infrastructure in the Middle East.
“The Philippine market ended in the red following strong selling pressure driven by the peso’s drop to a record low against the U.S. dollar,” said Luis Limlingan, head of sales at Regina Capital Development Corp. “Additionally, ongoing uncertainty in the Middle East, which continues to impact oil prices, further weighed on market sentiment.”
Most sectors ended in the red, led by mining and oil, which plunged 6.7 percent. Property and holding firms declined 1.41 percent and 1.08 percent, respectively. Industrial was the only sector in positive territory, up 0.14 percent.
Value turnover reached P8.05 billion. Market breadth was negative, with 133 decliners, 61 gainers, and 55 stocks unchanged. Foreign investors remained defensive, with outflows totaling P460 million.
Meanwhile, the Philippine peso weakened by 0.58 pesos from Wednesday’s close of 59.52 to reach a new record low. Data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed the local currency opened at 59.9 and touched an intraday low of 60.4.
John Paolo Rivera, a senior research fellow at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said the depreciation reflects intensifying external pressures. He noted that escalating oil prices increase the country’s dollar demand for imports while risk-off sentiment strengthens the greenback.
“Breaching 60 is more of a stress signal from global conditions, especially oil and dollar strength, than a breakdown in domestic fundamentals,” Rivera said. “The key question now is persistence; if these pressures remain, the peso could stay near or above this level in the near term.”
Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong & Co., described the breach as a “knee-jerk reaction” to retaliatory strikes by Iran against Gulf energy sites and a major Qatari gas hub.
“If this escalates, we could see it staying above 60,” Ravelas said.
