Local shares end flat as China virus fears persist
By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter
LOCAL shares ended flat on Friday anud heightened worries across the globe over China’s coronavirus outbreak.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) inched up 7.06 points or 0.09% to close at 7,623.41. The broader all shares index gained 19.37 points or 0.43% to 4,523.57.
“Shares closed flat with some concerns regarding the severity of the Wuhan coronavirus. The World Health Organization concluded that it is now a local Chinese emergency, but the situation has not yet become a global health emergency,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a mobile message.
On Thursday, the WHO called the new coronavirus that killed 26 people in China “an emergency in China,” saying it was a “bit too early” to consider this a “public health emergency of international concern.”
More than 800 cases of the novel coronavirus have been reported globally. The Health department announced earlier this week that a Chinese boy traveling to Cebu City tested positive for coronavirus.
The Civil Aeronautics Board on Friday decided to suspend all flights connecting Wuhan to any point in the Philippines, with the exception of a couple charter flight operators that will be bringing back Chinese tourists to Wuhan until Jan. 27.
Chinese stocks slumped on Friday, as the Shanghai SE Composite index dropped 2.75% at the close. Other Asian markets ended mixed: Japan’s Nikkei 225 index climbed 0.13% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index grew 0.15%, while South Korea’s Kospi index lost 0.93% and Thailand’s SET 50 index shed 0.37%.
At the PSE, four sub-sectors performed positively on Friday. Mining and oil advanced 88.68 points or 1.13% to 7,968.19; property picked up 26.19 points or 0.66% to 3,962.32; industrial added 59.46 points or 0.62% to 9,728.72 and services increased 9.23 points or 0.60% to 1,544.66.
In the red were holding firms, which shaved 27.81 points or 0.38% to 7,348.36, and financials, which dipped 2.71 points or 0.15% to 1,810.37.
Some 847.15 million issues worth P5.72 billion switched hands on Friday, increasing from Thursday’s 669.94 million issues valued at P6.63 billion.
Foreign investors chose to stay away from the PSE on Friday, as net foreign selling grew to P556.51 million from P132.6 million on Thursday.
