Philippine stocks yesterday fell for a fifth day, pushing the nation’s benchmark index into a bear market, amid concern over potential global headwinds and disappointing domestic economic data.
The nation’s benchmark equity gauge slid to the lowest level in more than two years as the prospect of higher US tariffs threatened by US President Donald Trump damped the optimism of global equity investors. A government report published on Thursday showed the local economy grew slower than analysts expected, hurt by sluggish investment, consumption and farm output.
“The bout of continuing weakness is likely being underpinned by the lack of a positive catalyst,” said Rastine Mackie Mercado, an analyst at Chinabank Securities Corp in Manila.
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Investors are also awaiting the release of fourth-quarter and full-year company’s earnings reports, he said.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index slipped 4 percent yesterday to 5,862.59, more than 20 percent below its October high, and the lowest closing level since October 2022. Volumes climbed during the selloff, with 138.8 million shares changing hands, the highest daily turnover in four months.
The nation’s GDP rose 5.2 percent last quarter from a year earlier, the statistics agency said on Thursday. That fell short of the 5.5 percent median estimate in a Bloomberg survey and matched the 5.2 percent pace for July to September.
Full-year growth at 5.6 percent also missed the adjusted government target of 6 percent to 6.5 percent and the 5.8 percent forecast by economists. On quarter, the expansion was slower than estimated at 1.8 percent.
Philippine Finance Secretary Ralph Recto said the government remains “optimistic” about its outlook for this year.
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