Stocks slide below 7,000 mark for first time in 2018

MANILA, Philippines — As the overall sentiment remains bearish, local equities on Friday crashed below the 7,000 level in intraday trade and tracked negative finishes overseas.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index—a barometer of investor confidence—continued to bleed, dropping 0.49 percent or 34.95 points to close at 7,063.20.

For the first time this year, the PSEi also plunged below the 7,000 mark after posting an intraday low of 6,923.67, but bargain hunting helped it end the trading session without sliding much further.

The local bourse has sagged by more than 20 percent since hitting an all-time high of 9,058.62 on Jan. 29, 2018—sinking deeper into the bear territory as confidence in the stock market has not returned.

Meanwhile, the broader all shares index slumped 0.51 percent or 22.15 points to 4,347.06, while all sectoral counters retreated except for property and mining sub-indices.

“The PSEi ended more than -5 percent down this week, which is one biggest in recent trading history,” Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital said in a market commentary.

“Local issues were sold down heavily in the morning due to a number of reasons,” Limlingan added, citing declines in US and European markets.

Asian stocks were mixed Friday as investors were still wary over trade disputes between China and the U.S. as well as between the U.S. and Europe that could hurt corporate profit and jobs. Some markets were making slight rebounds but unable to make up their heavy losses for the week. — with reports from the Associated Press