Stocks plunge further as foreign funds exit

MANILA, Philippines — It was a bloodbath at the Philippine stock market yesterday with the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index plunging 129.18 points, or 1.66 percent, to end at 7,610.68.

Likewise, the broader All Shares index declined by 51.36 points or 1.10 percent to end at 4,635.68.

All sectors also finished in the negative zone with the industrial sector recording the sharpest drop at 178 points.

Total value turnover was thin at P6.138 billion. Market breadth was negative, 110 to 80, while 46 issues were unchanged.

“It was a bloodbath for the PSEi having been plagued by a drop in US markets (Tuesday) night, as well as the persistent net foreign selling. The index closed 129.18 points down, and ended at its low of 7,610.68. Net foreign selling, meanwhile, amounted to P498 million,” said Gabriel Perez of Papa Securities.

Yesterday’s losers included BDO (down 4.5 percent), ICTSI (down 3.8 percent) and Universal Robina Corp. (down 3.3 percent). The three had the largest losses in the index.

BDO had a huge net foreign selling record of P146 million.

“With the index’s close today, it may have effectively broken down its initial support area at 7,620, which was the low last August,” Perez said.

Meanwhile, a major global share index hit its lowest level in a month on Wednesday after US manufacturing activity tumbled to more than a decade low, sparking worries that the fallout from the US-China trade war is spreading to the US economy.