PSEi falls for 4th straight day amid Euro debt concerns

Philippine share prices slipped for the fourth straight day as Eurozone debt concerns continued to stoke fears of another global economic crisis. The benchmark 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange index lost 34.05 points or 0.79 percent at 4,258.86 while the all shares shed 26.57 points or 0.88 percent at 3,000.66. Market breadth was negative with 34 losers against 113 gainers and 45 stocks that closed unchanged. All six sectoral indices retreated led by Mining & Oil's 3.46-percent drop and Property's 1.57-percent decline. volume traded reached 8.35 billion valued at P4.25 billion. "Markets particularly the PSEi, will continue to be driven by external factors. Europe will be a large influence over markets' movements in the next days. A potential Greek default and its repercussions to the whole region is increasing worries and volatility in markets...Meanwhile, conditions in the US still does not provide relief," said Maria Arlysa E. Narciso of AB Capital in a market note posted online. Europe remains embroiled in a debt crisis as Athens struggle to take steps to enable it to receive the latest financial aid from the European Commission, European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Despite a positive overnight performance of Wall Street, Asian markets were trading in the red as of mid-session Wednesday. Main indices in Seoul and Taiwan were trading at over 2 percent discount. In the local bourse, three of the five most active stocks closed in the red. SM Investments Corp., the parent firm of the SM group and the session's top traded, slid P2.50 or 0.45 percent to P549.50. Lepanto Consolidated Mining Co. "A" dropped P0.07 or 5.15 percent to P1.29. Alternative power producer Energy Development Corp. tumbled P0.02 or 0.32 percent to P6.11. Boulevard Holdings Inc. jumped P0.01 or 3.57 percent to P0.43. Telecommunications giant Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. gained P6 or 0.25 percent at P2,364. — CMA/OMG, GMA News