Iraq, valuation woes dampen Phl stocks

MANILA, Philippines - Local share prices declined yesterday as rising tension in Iraq added to valuation concerns.

At the Philippine Stock Exchange, the benchmark index shed 26.50 points, or 0.39 percent, to settle at 6,758.45.

“Value calculations have once more been skewered by prospects of increased inflationary pressures on fears the eruption of violence in Iraq will squeeze global oil supply,” said Jun Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp.

Trading was also cautious ahead of the policy rate-setting meeting of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the US Federal Reserve this week.

The holding firms counter fell 0.74 percent, the services dub-index dropped 0.52 percent and the financials counter lost 0.26 percent to drag the market lower.

Decliners narrowly beat advancers, 95 to 91, while 47 issues were unchanged. Value turnover slipped to P6.71 billion from P7.76 billion last Friday, as 1.13 billion shares changed hands.

Most actively traded stocks were PLDT, BDO, Ayala Corp, SM Investments and Alliance Global. Top gainers were Keppel Holdings B shares, IRipple and Da Vinci Capital, while the biggest losers were Keppel Holdings A shares, Easycall Communications and Roxas & Co.

Last Friday, US stocks posted modest gains anchored on a rally in Intel Corp and a slew of corporate deals that offset fears of a disruption in oil supply as a result of the tension in Iraq. The S&P 500 index rose 0.3 percent to 1,936.15, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 41.55 points, or 0.3 percent, to 16,775.74.