PH stocks, peso slip as September inflation accelerates

MANILA – All counters in the local bourse ended in the red on Tuesday following the release of the higher-than-expected domestic inflation rate for September, and the Philippine peso weakened further.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 1.15 percent to 5,677.12 points, and the broader All Shares by 0.86 percent to 3,170.73 points.

Mining and Oil led the sectors with a drop of 2.38 percent, followed by Industrial, 1.81 percent; Property, 1.52 percent; Services, 1.24 percent; Financials, 0.56 percent; and Holding Firms, 0.15 percent.

Volume was thin at 536.16 million shares amounting to PHP5.5 billion.

Decliners led advancers at 120 to 73, while 69 shares were unchanged.

Luis Limlingan, Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales, said the jump in the domestic inflation rate to 7.2 percent in September from August’s 6.1 percent made investors cautious.

“The upside, which remains largely rooted in elevated fuel prices amid the ongoing US-Iran conflict, raised concerns over persistent price pressures and its potential impact on the BSP’s (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) monetary policy stance,” he said.

“Investors remained watchful for further inflation developments and signals on the central bank’s interest-rate path.”

The local currency ended the day at 62.77 against the US dollar, a depreciation from its 62.62 close on Monday.

It opened the day at 62.55, and traded between 62.84 and 62.55. The day’s average stood at 62.75.

Volume reached nearly USD1.5 billion, lower than the USD1.69 billion on Monday.