Manila, Philippines - Local shares fell on Wednesday in anticipation of the upcoming monetary policy briefing by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), while the peso gained strength against the dollar. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 49.73 points to close at 6,558.63, and the All Shares index also decreased by 12.49 points ending at 3,499.42.
According to Philippines News Agency, the head of sales at Regina Capital Development Corp., the decline of 0.75% in the local bourse to 6,558.63 occurred as investors awaited the BSP's interest rate decision, which is scheduled for Thursday. Limlingan noted that analysts are predicting the BSP to hold its current policy rates, citing stable inflation levels. The trading day saw most sectors in decline, except for the Industrial sector, which increased by 73.68 points. The market breadth was negative with 109 decliners against 80 advancers, and 48 shares remained unchanged.
The peso closed at 57.505, up from 57.84 the previous day. It opened at 57.71 and fluctuated between 57.505 and 57.74 throughout the day. The weighted average for the day was 57.634, with the total trade volume increasing to USD 1.2 billion from USD 1.1 billion on Tuesday.
Michael Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, suggested that the peso might range between 57.40 to 57.60 on Thursday.