PHL share prices end lower hounded by US manufacturing woes

Philippine share prices closed lower on Tuesday as manufacturing woes in the US turned market sentiments sour. The benchmark 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange index slipped 9.30 points or 0.20 percent to 4,541.23, while the broader all shares slid 4.50 points or 0.14 percent to 3,142.34. Losers narrowly beat gainers, 75 to 71, while 44 stocks closed unchanged. Four of the six sub-indices retreated, with Property suffering the worst with a 0.42-percent drop. Only Mining & Oil and Financials bucked the decline, posting a 0.32-percent and 0.10-percent advance, respectively. Volume traded reached 4.57 billion shares valued at P5 billion. "Sentiments turned negative Tuesday pulling the index off a record high after a much-anticipated deal on the US debt-limit failed to spur a sustained rebound in the Dow overnight," said trader Justino Calaycay Jr. of Accord Capital Equities. A trade group report indicated that US manufacturers posted their weakest growth in two years in July, heightening fears that the already sluggish US economy could further weaken. The news also sent all other Asian markets to fall. Main index in South Korea was trading at a discount of nearly three percent, while those in Australia, China (Shanghai), Japan, and Taiwan were logging losses of over one percent each. In the local market, three of the five most active stocks for the day, three closed in the red. Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., one of the country's largest lenders in terms of assets and the day's top traded, shed P0.15 or 0.19 percent at P78.85, while rival Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. plunged P1.55 or 2.41 percent to P62.80. Holding firm Alliance Global Group Inc. rose P0.10 or 0.83 percent to P12.10. Alternative power producer Energy Development Corp. lost P0.11 or 1.61 percent at P6.71. Holding firm Zeus Holdings Inc. added P0.14 or 17.5 percent to P0.94. - CMA/OMG, GMA News