The stock market fell slightly in cautious trading ahead of the first meeting of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas later in the day after January inflation rose to a three-year high.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index dropped 22.48 points, or 0.3 percent, to 8,645.08 on a trading volume of P7.1 billion. Gainers beat losers, 107 to 92, with 60 issues unchanged.
Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., the second-biggest lender in terms of assets, lost 1.2 percent to P96, while Megawide Construction Corp. slumped 3.5 percent to P20.70.
Casino operator Bloomberry Resorts Corp. surged 5.2 percent to P13.46, while Now Corp., which is bidding to become the third telecommunications company, advanced 4.8 percent to P7.16.
Most major Asian markets, meanwhile, rose on Thursday following the week’s sharp losses but traders are struggling to get a firm footing in a volatile February, spooked by heavy selling and warnings of more upheaval to come.
After a run of almost uninterrupted gains across the globe fueled by cheap money and optimism about the economy, traders are having to navigate turbulent waters as central banks—led by the Federal Reserve—look to lift borrowing costs.
Last Friday’s strong US jobs and wage growth data, coupled with rising yields on key US Treasury bills, brought an end to the record-setting global rally, sending Wall Street spiraling down before slamming world markets this week.
Asia took the biggest hit on Tuesday, with Hong Kong and Tokyo among the worst affected but others also felt the pinch.
And investors have been unable to steady the ship with a rebound on Wednesday running out of steam.
On Thursday there were more swings, though most markets stayed in the green.
Tokyo ended 1.1 percent higher while Hong Kong was 0.4 percent up having fallen around eight percent over the previous five sessions.
Sydney was 0.2 percent higher while Seoul and Singapore each gained 0.5 percent. Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok also advanced.
However, Shanghai tumbled 1.4 percent despite data showing Chinese imports smashed expectations and exports were supported by strong global demand.
Wellington, Taipei and Mumbai all fell.
Wall Street’s three main indexes sank into the red, while in early European trade markets that saw strong gains on Wednesday reversed at the open. London fell 0.8 percent, Paris slipped 0.5 percent and Frankfurt lost 0.7 percent.
“There are a lot of risks ahead and we’ve been lulled into a false sense of security over the last couple of years with central banks keeping rates low for a very long time,” Steve Goldman, Kapstream Capital head and portfolio manager, told Bloomberg TV.
“Risk assets are going to continue to perform well albeit with a lot more volatility than what we’ve seen in the past.”
Expectations the Fed will hike interest rates more than the three times expected this year have lifted the dollar against high-yielding currencies including the Australian dollar, South Korean won, Indonesian rupiah and South African rand.