Market declines on widening BOP deficit; PhilWeb advances
STOCKS fell Tuesday on expectations of an interest rate hike later this week and concerns over the widening balance of payments deficit that pulled down the peso to its weakest level in 44 months, contributing to higher prices of commodities including petroleum products.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark lost 48 points, or 0.8 percent, to close at 6,285.19. The broader all-share index also slid 19 points, or 0.6 percent, to settle at 3,368.67 on a value turnover of less than P4 billion.
Losers outnumbered gainers, 94 to 87, while 53 issues were unchanged. Only four of the 10 most active stocks ended in the green, led by PhilWeb Corp. which advanced 15.1 percent to P5.95.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Tuesday that the BOP deficit reached $1.61 billion in May on rising commodity imports fueled by higher petroleum prices. The peso closed Tuesday at 54.265 against the dollar, a level not seen since October 2018.
Meanwhile, equities rose in most cities in Asia as some stability returned to markets after last week’s upheaval, but analysts warned of further pain for traders after central bank officials hinted at more interest rate hikes to reel in inflation.
While there was no catalyst from Wall Street owing to a public holiday, a healthy performance across Europe provided a little boost and bargain-buying was also lending support.
However, there remains an overarching sense of gloom as traders speculate that the sharp lift in borrowing costs around the world will tip economies into recession.
Focus this week is on Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell’s two days of testimony to lawmakers in Washington, which will be closely watched for insight into the bank’s thinking and possible clues about its plans for fighting surging prices.
The Fed announced a three-quarter point lift last week, after inflation data days earlier had smashed forecasts and hit a four-decade high.
“While [investors do] not expect Powell to reinvent the policy wheel, we could expect him to reinforce the idea that the Fed is in data-dependent mode,” said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.
“Hence, any shift in Fed rhetoric will be a function of incoming data, virtually all of which now presents event risk. From that perspective, further evidence of persistent inflation will trigger policy panic, while any signs of sluggish growth momentum will confirm the recession narrative.
“Neither suggests that now is the time to board the rally wagon.”
Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta all rose but Shanghai slipped.
London opened barely moved, while Paris and Frankfurt edged up.
“There might be a narrative that we’ve hit a bottom, we are oversold, the Fed is taking inflation seriously and that might be slightly bullish in the interim,” Frances Stacy, of Optimal Capital, told Bloomberg TV.