The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped on Friday, Oct. 10, despite the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) policy rate cut as investor sentiment continued to be dampened by the flood control corruption scandal, weak peso, and lower foreign direct investments (FDIs).
The main index shed 19.61 points, or 0.32 percent, to close at 6,037.79. The mining sector led the decline, with only the industrial counter managing to advance.
Volume was stable at 1.51 billion shares worth ₱6.34 billion, as losers outnumbered gainers—97 to 79, with 65 unchanged.
“The PSEi continued its decline today despite the recent rate cut from the BSP,” said Regina Capital Development Corp. managing director Luis Limlingan.
He added that, “The depreciation of the peso against the US dollar likely dampened investor sentiment and contributed to the cautious outlook of market participants, leading to subdued trading activity overall.“
Philstocks Financial Inc. research manager Japhet Tantiangco said, “The local market declined as investors worry over the effect of the Philippines’ corruption issues on its economic prospects. This comes following the BSP’s rate cut [on Thursday, Oct. 9], citing the weakened local economic growth outlook with the corruption issues as the main culprit.”
He noted that, “The peso’s weak position against the United States (US) dollar also continued to weigh on the bourse.”
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort said the PSEi corrected lower for the second straight trading day amid some continued healthy profit-taking after the year-on-year decline in the latest net FDI data.
“The PSEi also again corrected slightly lower after the US dollar/peso exchange rate corrected higher to ₱58.3 levels, after the surprise 25-basis-point (bp) BSP rate cut,” he added.