Market plunges deeper amid Middle East conflict

MANILA, Philippines — The stock market plunged deeper in the red yesterday on concerns over the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) suffered its eighth consecutive losing streak as it dropped below the 6,600 level.

The PSEi lost 96.96 points or 1.46 percent to end at 6,562.43.

The broader All Shares index also plummeted to 3,478.11, 1.12 percent or 39.29 points lower.

Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital said Philippine shares were sold down as investors took precautionary measures following the geopolitical tension between Iran and Israel.

He said cash remittances were released but were not enough to offset the sentiment.

“The local bourse plunged as worries over tensions in the Middle East heightened, forcing investors to secure some gains to avoid uncertainties,” Claire Alviar of Philstocks Financial said.

Alviar said most Asian markets also fell as investors assessed the impact of Iran’s massive drone and missile attacks on Israel over the weekend.

“Moreover, investors are waiting for how Israel would respond to this,” she said.

Monday’s net market value turnover stood at P5.21 billion.

Local gauges were in the red except for mining and oil, which eked out a 0.33-percent gain.

Holdings firms suffered the biggest decline at 1.99 percent, followed by financials with a 1.68-percent drop.

Market breadth was negative as decliners pummeled advancers, 136 to 63, while 44 issues were unchanged.

Century Pacific Food posted the largest gain among index members at 2.35 percent, while ACEN had the steepest decline at 6.98 percent.