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PHILIPPINE SHARES slumped further on Wednesday, with the main index sinking to the 6,400 range, as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of the monetary policy decisions of the US and Philippine central banks.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 0.5% or 32.63 points to end at 6,469.08 on Wednesday, while the broader all shares index fell by 0.27% or 10.21 points to end at 3,700.

This was a fresh over four-month low for the PSEi as this marked its worst finish since Aug. 6’s 6,433.24 close.

“The local market extended its decline to a sixth straight day as investors stayed on the cautious side while waiting for the outcomes, including the policy outlooks, of the meetings of the Federal Reserve and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP),” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message.

“Philippine shares continued to drop ahead of the FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meeting and following the sentiment of regional markets… Meanwhile, US equities fell on Tuesday, with a shift in focus on technology sectors and profit taking in non-tech sectors. This reflected underlying concerns over rising interest rates, trade uncertainties, and the Federal Reserve’s upcoming decision,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

The Fed was set to announce its policy decision overnight at the close of its two-day review. Meanwhile, the BSP is holding its own meeting on Thursday.

US stocks closed down on Tuesday and crude prices fell as investors parsed economic data and girded themselves for a series of central bank decisions, including an expected rate cut from the US Federal Reserve, Reuters reported.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 267.58 points or 0.61% to 43,449.90; the S&P 500 fell 23.47 points or 0.39% to 6,050.61; and the Nasdaq Composite fell 64.83 points or 0.32% to 20,109.06.

“The peso’s weakness, now testing the P59-per-dollar level, also weighed on the day’s trading,” Mr. Tantiangco added.

Majority of the sectoral indices declined on Wednesday. Financials fell by 1.71% or 38.10 points to 2,185.37; property went down by 1.22% or 29.21 to 2,363.60; mining and oil dropped by 0.55% or 41.16 points to 7,424.48; and holding firms retreated by 0.3% or 16.79 points to 5,571.64.

Meanwhile, industrials went up by 0.66% or 59.25 points to 8,961.17, and services rose by 0.62% or 12.82 points to 2,066.91.

Value turnover went down to P5.96 billion on Wednesday with 1.39 billion shares changing hands from the P6.6 billion with 1.13 billion issues traded on Tuesday.

Decliners outnumbered advancers, 104 versus 83, while 61 names closed unchanged.

Net foreign selling decreased to P487.26 million on Wednesday from P1.36 billion on Tuesday. — Ashley Erika O. Jose with Reuters

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