The local stock market benchmark plunged almost 200 points to its lowest level this year as bearish sentiment prevailed.
The main index fell 186.08 points or 2.93 percent to close at 3,158.48 with the Mining sector leading the retreat across the board. Volume rose to 632 million shares worth a hefty P8.26 billion as losers outnumbered gainers 108 to 74 with 52 unchanged.
“Philippine shares had one of the biggest drops in several months as investors remained wary of the regional run-up especially in the US,” said Regina Capital Development Corporation Managing Director Luis Limlingan.
He added that, “Locally the updated projections of the latest FTSE rebalancing had many index constituents with notable outflows.“
Philstocks Financial Assistant Research Manager Claire Alviar said “The local bourse dropped due to strong net foreign selling, recording a net outflow of P1.34 billion. The market’s new level is its lowest this year and marks its 8th straight day of decline.”
“Additionally, the weakness of the peso against the US dollar continued to weigh on sentiment. Negative sentiment from our regional peers also affected the market's performance after Japan's May core inflation data came in slightly cooler than expected, jeopardizing the country's plans to raise interest rates,” she noted.