Manila: The extension of the deadline for the imposition of new US tariff rates from August 1 to August 7 halted the decline of both the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) and the peso on Friday. After a continuous drop since Monday, the main equities index increased by 0.85 percent, closing the week at 6,306.13 points. The All Shares index also saw a rise, climbing by 0.39 percent to 3,751.67 points.
According to Philippines News Agency, most sectoral counters experienced gains, with Holding Firms reporting the largest increase at 1.38 percent. This was followed by the Industrial sector at 1.12 percent, Services at 0.87 percent, Property at 0.40 percent, and Financials at 0.10 percent. The Mining and Oil sector was the only one to end the day in negative territory, decreasing by 0.40 percent.
Trading volume rose to 1.28 billion shares, amounting to PHP5.59 billion. The market saw more advancers than decliners, with 99 stocks advancing, 91 declining, and 50 remaining unchanged. Luis Limlingan, head of sales at Regina Capital Development Corp., observed that despite the slight increase, market turnover remained low, likely due to investors monitoring the impact of the tariff deadline extension.
Limlingan further noted that the decline in most indices on Wall Street for July contributed to the low turnover in the local market. He mentioned that the current cautious sentiment follows a series of strong earnings reports from tech giants, with investors also awaiting a key jobs report and evaluating the broader implications of potential trade policy changes.
The foreign currency market also reflected positive sentiments, as the peso appreciated, ending the week at 58.14 compared to its previous close of 58.32 on Thursday. The peso began the day weaker at 58.25, down from its 57.86 start in the preceding session. It traded within a range of 58.63 to 58.13, with the day's average settling at 58.39. Trading volume in the currency market reached USD2.54 billion, slightly lower than the USD2.6 billion recorded the previous day.
