Stocks end lower on FTSE rebalancing

Local stocks ended the week in the red as the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) rebalancing took effect.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index slipped by 82.06 points, or 1.32 percent, to close at 6,126.34, while the broader all-shares index declined by 33.13 points, or 0.99 percent, to settle at 3,320.18.

“Philippine shares were sold down as the latest FTSE rebalancing took into effect, while the US rallied on the back of Arm Holdings’ public debut and as investors assessed the latest PPI [Producers Price Index] reading,” Reginal Capital Development Corp. head of sales Limlingan said.

Limlingan said the FTSE rebalancing, which took effect Friday, was expected to have an estimated total country net outflow of more than P1 billion.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the continued and consistent growth in OFW remittances would help the families of overseas workers cope up with higher prices and higher interest rates.

Remittances grew 2.6 percent in July to $2.99 billion from $2.92 billion in the same month last year, based on latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.