The stock market declined Monday on lingering concerns on rising inflation and tensions on trade talks involving the US, Canada, and China.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index slipped 23.49 points, or 0.3 percent, to 7,832.22 on a value turnover of nearly P6 billion. Losers beat gainers, 101 to 85, with 54 issues unchanged.
Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran on Monday said the inflation rate in August likely accelerated to 5.9 percent from 5.7 percent in July mainly due to supply-side pressures.
The Bangko Sentral earlier projected the August inflation could reach as high as 5.9 percent. The Philippine Statistics Authority will release the inflation data for August within the week.
Conglomerate Ayala Corp. fell 2.2 percent to P978, while Jollibee Foods Corp., the biggest fast-food chain, lost 2.1 percent to P282.
Philippine H20 Ventures Corp. of businessman Dennis Uy jumped 24 percent to P6.45. Philippine H20, soon be called PH Resorts Group Holdings Inc., said in an earlier filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission it would sell up to 2.054 billion in common shares with an indicative offer price of up to P9 apiece.
Alliance Global Group Inc. of tycoon Andrew Tan climbed 3.8 percent to P14.32.
The rest of Asian markets started Monday on a negative note as trade tensions returned to the fore, with Donald Trump eyeing fresh tariffs on a swathe of Chinese goods and Nafta talks with Canada hitting a wall.
The optimism that permeated trading floors at the start of last week has been replaced by a now-familiar sense of dread after the US president hit out at Ottawa over the weekend as the two sides struggle to hammer out a new deal.
In a tweet over the weekend, Trump threatened to exclude Canada from a new North American Free Trade Agreement after negotiations to rewrite the 1994 pact ended without an agreement Friday.
Japan’s Nikkei ended 0.7 percent lower, Hong Kong was down 0.8 percent in the afternoon and Shanghai fell 0.2 percent. Singapore lost 0.4 percent, Seoul shed 0.7 percent and Sydney was 0.1 percent off.
There were also losses in Wellington, Taipei, and Jakarta.
Trump said there was “no political necessity to keep Canada in the new Nafta deal. If we don’t make a fair deal for the US after decades of abuse, Canada will be out.”
While talks will resume Wednesday, his outburst seemed designed to ramp up pressure on Canadian negotiators.
The comments threw a spanner in the works for investors after the US and Mexico said earlier in the week they had agreed a revised pact.
Trump also roiled markets last week by saying he wanted to impose tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports as soon as public consultation ends on Thursday, adding to the $50 billion already targeted.
That rekindled fears of an all-out trade war between the world’s top two economies, while European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker on Friday warned the EU would retaliate in kind if Trump pushes through duties on foreign cars. With AFP