MANILA, Philippines — The local stock market tumbled for the fifth straight day yesterday as concerns escalate on the possibility of a widening global trade war.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi)slipped 65.13 points or 0.85percent to finish at 7,545.55 while the broader All Shares gauge lost 31.67 points or 0.68 percent to finish at 4,604.01.
The sectoral indexes were a mixed bag but biased toward the negative with the property, holding firms, financials and mining and oil sectors ending in the red.
The industrial and services sectors, on the other hand, finished in positive territory.
Traders said investors turned jittery over the worsening global trade war.
“Global equities markets fall for a second day as the US slapped tariffs on $7.5 billion worth of European goods, intensifying the global trade war. This came after the World Trade Organization ruled in favor of the US that Airbus had been receiving illegal government aid for years. The tariffs would go into effect on Oct. 18. Here at the PSE, the main index ends lower, down another 0.85 percent on average trading volumes,” said Christopher Mangun of AAA Securities.
There was likewise massive foreign outflows, with net selling at P1.26 billion.
“The PSEi came all the way down to 7,500 which is where it was at the beginning of the year and has proven to be the turning point in the last 10 months. The last time it came down to this level back in May, we then saw a rally of at least 500 points. If this level do not hold, then we may end the year closer to the 7,000 level,” he added.