Profit-taking hits shares; peso, other FX end lower

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Local share prices ended mixed yesterday as late session profit-taking hit the market while the peso, as well as most of the region’s currencies, closed lower.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index was down 1.62 points to 6,820.53, a 0.02 percent drop. The broader all shares index was up 6.49 points to 4,205, a 0.16 percent hike.

Losers edged gainers 102 to 94 with 53 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P9.06 billion.

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The peso closed at 49.98 to the dollar, down from 49.85. It opened at 49.80, hitting a high of 49.74, and a low of 50.08. Trading turnover reached $1.17 billion.

Global central banks have sought to tighten policies to rein in inflation spikes, with the Bank of Korea becoming the first major Asian central bank to move away from pandemic-era monetary settings, Reuters reported. Investors are also eyeing Fed chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Friday to get clues about a tapering in US stimulus.

“Markets might have been too quick to brush off the Fed’s Jackson Hole Symposium on Aug. 27-28 as a non-event, “ analysts at DBS said in a note.

Surging COVID-19 cases in the region have also pressured its equity markets.

South Korea’s stock benchmark fell up to 0.8 percent, and the won weakened 0.3 percent against the dollar.

The Bank of Korea raised its policy rate for the first time in almost three years, even as the country reported highest daily count of COVID-19 deaths for 2021.

“This is not a dismissal of (the) Delta risks, but an acknowledgement of the substantial recovery (accentuated by exports) thus far,” Mizuho Bank analysts said in a note.

“While the rate-hike may be incongruous with Delta outbreaks, it provides a pre-emptive buffer against KRW (Korean won) and macro-stability risks, and quells worries of extended leverage.”

But, the Malaysian ringgit was at its strongest in over five weeks, as the dollar hovered near a one-week low versus major peers. The country’s stock benchmark gained for a fifth consecutive session.

The ringgit’s move was due to softer dollar and broadly supported risk sentiment on positive US vaccination news and on expectations that Jackson Hole may not see a tapering announcement, Maybank analysts said in a note.

Claire Alviar, analyst at Philstocks Financial Inc. said last-minute profit-taking “pulled the market down.”

“During intraday, the PSEi was trading in the green led by the rally of telco stocks,” she said.

Most actively traded Globe Telecom Inc. was up P348 to P2,948. PLDT Inc. was up P104 to P1,449. Converge Information and Communication Technology Solutions Inc. was up P1.30 to P31. Ayala Corp. was up P37 to P778. Dito CME Holdings Corp. was up P0.78 to P8.96.

Metro Pacific Investments Corp. was down P0.04 to P3.86. AC Energy Corp. was down P0.11 to P9.20. GT Capital Holdings Inc. was up P26 to P551. Monde Nissin Corp. was down P0.32 to P16.30. JG Summit Holdings Inc. was down P2.70 to P64.95.

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