Economic worries weigh down PSEi

MANILA, Philippines —  Share prices continued to correct, finishing in negative territory anew yesterday on concerns over economic growth prospects here and in China.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) closed at 6,572.51, down by 64.49 points or 0.97 percent. The broader All Shares index slipped to 3,476.66 points, down by 29.57 points or 0.84 percent.

All sectors closed in the red, with mining and oil and holding firms among the biggest decliners.

Total value turnover reached P6.7 billion. Market breadth was negative, 108 to 80, with 50 issues left unchanged.

Claire Alviar of Philstocks Financial said the local bourse dropped as market sentiment was dampened by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ warning that the country’s economic growth may fall short of government targets through 2025 due to the impact of high interest rates.

“Moreover, most Asian stocks dropped after China’s fourth quarter GDP figures fell below expectations at 5.2 percent, lower than the 5.3 percent analysts’ forecast. This further weighed down on sentiment since China is one of our top trading partners,” she said.

Most Asian markets fell further as hopes for an early interest rate cut by key central banks faded and data confirmed China’s economy last year grew at its slowest pace in more than three decades.

The euphoria that saw out 2023 has been erased by a string of data and comments from the US Federal Reserve suggesting a first-quarter dovish pivot was unlikely as inflation stays stubbornly above target and labor markets remain resilient.

At the same time, rising tensions in the Middle East and eastern Europe, and the long-running US-China spat, continue to keep investors on their toes, fearing the fragile economic recovery could be turned on its head.

The negative mood was worsened by data showing China’s GDP  expanded by 5.2 percent last year, its worst performance since 1990, excluding the years that were hit by the pandemic.

The reading highlighted the impact of a crippling property crisis, sluggish consumption and global turmoil on the world’s number-two economy, which has struggled to capitalize on the reopening from long-running zero-COVID measures that were lifted in late 2022.