Peso slightly up vs USD; PSEi down

MANILA -- The Philippine peso regained strength Friday while the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) finished in the red after recovering a day ago.

A trader said the local currency finished at 51.45 from the previous day’s 51.53 against the US dollar as the market took a wait-and-see stance ahead of US President Donald Trump’s announcement of the successor of Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen, whose term ends in February 2018.

The local unit opened the day sideways at 51.48 from 51.43 a day ago. It traded between 51.57 and 51.44, averaging 51.507.

A total of USD519.1 million changed hands, lower than Thursday’s USD565.7 million.

On the other hand, the main stocks ended the week with a 0.78-percent, or 66.42-point, drop to 8,420.95 points.

All the other indices followed, with All Shares down by 0.74 percent, or 36.68 points, to 4,913.79 points.

The sectors were led by Mining and Oil, which fell 1.83 percent, followed by Industrial, 1.01 percent; Financials, 0.93 percent; Property, 0.81 percent; Holding Firms, 0.61 percent; and Services, 0.12 percent.

Volume reached 906.29 million shares amounting to PHP10.17 billion.

Losers surpassed gainers at 124 to 72 while 49 shares were unchanged. (PNA)