Ten companies will be added into the Philippine Stock Exchange’s (PSE) indices replacing seven that were removed after the latest index review by the stock exchange effective August 12.
This developed as the PSE index (PSEi) dropped 2.58 percent while the peso inched up, posting its strongest close against the dollar in two and a half month.
The PSE said the bellwether PSEi will have the same 30 company-constituents which remain to be among the top stocks in terms of market capitalization, liquidity, and free float level.
The reshuffling comes as the market reels from the latest scare in the global markets of a potential hard landing for the US economy.
For the 20-member PSE MidCap index, DoubleDragon Corp. and DigiPlus Interactive Corp. will take the place of Cebu Air Inc. and Shell Pilipinas Corp.
The Industrial index will see the addition of Alternergy Holdings Corp., Roxas and Company Inc., and RFM Corp. and the removal of Raslag Corp.
The Property index will see the inclusion of VistaREIT Inc. and the exclusion of DM Wenceslao & Associates, Inc. and Ever-Gotesco Resources and Holdings Inc.
Pacific Online Systems Corp., DigiPlus, and STI Education Systems Holdings Inc. will all become members of the Services index, while Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp. and Premiere Horizon Alliance Corp. will be taken out.
Asia United Bank Corp. and the A and B shares of Benguet Corp. will become constituents of the Financials and Mining and Oil indices, respectively.
The constituents of the PSE Dividend Yield and Holding Firms indices will remain unchanged while the rest of the indices will see updates in their composition.
Ramon Monzon, PSE chief executive officer, said the index review “ensures that market barometers feature the most qualified stocks based on the set criteria.”
Monday’s trading had the PSEi close at 6,434.73, down 170.57 points or 2.58 percent. The broader All Shares index was down 80.43 points to 3,516.47, a 2.24 percent drop.
Losers edged gainers 175 to 34 with 45 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P5.64 billion.
The peso closed at 57.90 to the dollar, up from 58.08 on Friday.
The currency opened at 57.85, and hit a high of 57.68 and a low of 57.915. Trading turnover reached $1.76 billion.
Michael Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said this is the peso’s best close since hitting 57.62 on May 17.
Overseas, investors moved out of risky assets on worries the Federal Reserve’s protracted fight against inflation may have pushed the US economy too close to a recession. Most regional currencies leapt higher as the dollar weakened on rising bets of deeper rate cuts by the Fed.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., (RCDC), said the market’s drop back to the 6,400-territory is due to global recession fears surrounding the US that made investors worrisome of a hard landing.
Most actively traded International Container Terminal Services Inc. was down P2 to P348.
BDO Unibank Inc. was down P1.80 to P139. Universal Robina Corp. was down P10 to P105.
Bank of the Philippine Islands was downP3.50 to P118.20. SM Prime Holdings Inc. was down P1.30 to P27.90.
