Manila: The peso gained further against the U.S. dollar Thursday but the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) ended its rally due to profit-taking. The local unit ended the day's trade at 58.11 to a greenback from its 58.29 close Wednesday. It opened the day at 58.18, way better than its 58.44 start in the previous session. The peso even strengthened to as much as 58.09 but was also pulled to 58.26. The average for the day stood at 58.18. Volume increased to USD1.62 billion from day-ago's USD1.46 billion.

According to Philippines News Agency, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation chief economist Michael Ricafort traced the peso's strength partly on the improvement of the bank's non-performing loan (NPL) ratio, and the recent rise of the local bourse's main index amid better risk appetite among investors. Ricafort noted that the peso exchange rate posted net appreciation against the US dollar after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reiterated that its monetary easing cycle is nearing the end following benign inflation data.

On the other hand, the PSEi ended the day in the negative territory, declining by 0.42 percent to 6,471.25 points, and the broader All Shares followed with a drop of 0.34 percent to 3,594.22 points. Most sectoral gauges tracked the main index, namely Property, Financials, Holding Firms, and Industrial. Meanwhile, Mining and Oil and Services sectors experienced gains.

Regina Capital Development Corporation head of sales Luis Limlingan explained that the PSEi ended lower as profit-taking persisted following a series of buying sessions across the index. This marked a healthy correction as investors locked in gains, impacting overall market sentiment and dragging key sectors lower.