PHILIPPINE SHARES declined on Wednesday amid renewed US banking sector and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worries.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell by 53.15 points or 0.8% to close at 6,540.24 on Wednesday, while the broader all shares index went down by 14.53 points or 0.41% to 3,492.26.

“The local bourse lost 53.15 points (0.8%) to 6,540.24 following the negative spillovers from the US markets overnight as the banking fears resurfaced,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Analyst Claire T. Alviar said in a Viber message.

“Philippine shares edged lower following First Republic Bank’s statement that its deposits dropped 40% year on year to $104.5 billion in the first quarter, which reignited concerns about the banking sector,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

Shares of First Republic Bank slid nearly 50% on Tuesday after it reported a more than $100 billion plunge in deposits in the quarter, battered by lost confidence in the banking sector, Reuters reported.

Wall Street’s major averages suffered their deepest declines so far this month as a downbeat UPS forecast exacerbated investor concerns about a slowing US economy on Tuesday while plunging deposits at regional First Republic Bank added to jitters about the bank sector’s health.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 344.57 points or 1.02% to 33,530.83; the S&P 500 lost 65.41 points or 1.58% to end at 4,071.63; and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 238.05 points or 1.98% to 11,799.16.

“Meanwhile, local investors braced for a potential window dressing this Friday. Another factor that caused investors to stay on the sidelines was the detection of the first case of Omicron sub-variant XBB1.16 or Arcturus,” Mr. Limlingan added.

The Philippines detected its first case of the new COVID-19 Omicron subvariant, a patient in Western Visayas, the Department of Health said on Tuesday.

The majority of sectoral indices closed lower on Wednesday, except for mining and oil, which increased by 139.06 points or 1.3% to 10,833.33, and services, which climbed by 2.09 points or 0.13% to 1,604.51.

Meanwhile, financials went down by 27.11 points or 1.41% to 1,885.42; industrials dropped by 83.90 points or 0.89% to 9,308.24; holding firms fell by 43.79 points or 0.68% to 6,315.73; and property declined by 3.61 points or 0.13% to 2,705.30.

Value turnover inched up to P5.45 billion on Wednesday with 766.97-million shares changing hands from the P5.23 billion with 741.13-million issues traded on Tuesday.

Decliners beat advancers, 101 versus 95, while 47 names closed unchanged.

Net foreign selling dropped to P192.87 million on Wednesday from P224.66 million on Tuesday. — A.H. Halili with Reuters

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