Manila: Worries about the impact of higher tariffs on Philippine exports continue to affect investors' sentiment, as seen in the local bourse's performance on Wednesday, with the main index dropping and the peso sustaining its depreciation.

According to Philippines News Agency, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) fell by 0.11 percent to 6,318.23 points, while the All Shares index decreased by 0.09 percent to 3,776.59 points. Most sectoral indices followed this downward trend, with Financials down by 0.59 percent, Holding Firms by 0.33 percent, Mining and Oil by 0.13 percent, and Services by 0.11 percent.

The trading volume totaled 799.99 million shares, amounting to PHP4.66 billion. Decliners outnumbered advancers at 95 to 87, with 62 shares remaining unchanged. Luis Limlingan, head of sales at Regina Capital Development Corporation, attributed the local equities' performance to investors' cautious stance as they awaited further developments on the impending US tariff deadline on August 1. This comes as the country reported increased exports for the first half of the year.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority indicated a 16.3 percent growth in the country's total trade last June, surpassing the previous month's 5 percent annual growth. The trade deficit also improved, with an annual decrease of 8.8 percent compared to the previous month's 23.3 percent. Limlingan also noted that ongoing company earnings reports are likely to influence market sentiment in the coming weeks.

In the currency market, the peso ended the day at 57.58 against the US dollar, down from its 57.31 finish on Tuesday. It opened the day at 57.2 and fluctuated between 57.6 and 57.11, with an average of 57.30. Trading volume increased to USD1.86 billion from the previous day's USD1.73 billion.