Manila: Both the local stock market and currency declined during Thursday's trading. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell by 0.20 percent to 6,412.81 points, while All Shares closed flat at 3,753.10 points.
According to Philippines News Agency, among sectoral indices, only the Industrial and Services sectors finished in the green territory, improving by 0.55 and 0.50 percent, respectively. Mining and Oil experienced the biggest drop for the day, declining by 1.82 percent, followed by Financials, which fell by 0.58 percent. Holding Firms and Property also saw declines of 0.41 and 0.33 percent, respectively.
'The PSEi slipped 12.99 points to close at 6,412.81, as investor sentiment turned cautious amid fading optimism over US-EU trade talks and heightened geopolitical risks,' stated Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales, Luis Limlingan. Losers outnumbered winners at 92 to 89, leaving the shares of 61 firms unchanged.
Meanwhile, the Philippine peso also weakened, closing at 55.73 against the US dollar, down by 0.25 from Wednesday's finish of 55.48. It opened the day at 55.65 and traded between a low of 55.62 and a high of 55.82, with the day's average standing at 55.70 against the greenback. Trade volume reached USD1.68 billion, lower than the previous day's USD1.8 billion.
