05.11.202504:45:23UTC+00Philippine Stocks Sink

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index experienced a 1.5% decline on Wednesday, reaching its lowest point since late September 2022. This downward movement was influenced by concerns related to domestic growth ahead of the release of third-quarter GDP data, along with a more extensive market sell-off. Economists pointed to weather-related disruptions and issues with flood control corruption as contributing factors to the slightly slower growth anticipated for the Philippine economy in Q3. Additionally, global sentiment became more cautious following significant losses in US tech stocks and fresh valuation warnings from top executives at major Wall Street banks, fueling fears of a possible market correction. In other developments, the latest figures revealed that inflation remained steady at 1.7% in October, falling short of the 1.8% forecast and staying below the central bank’s target range of 2%–4%. This bolstered expectations for another interest rate cut in December. Key players in the index, including SM Investments (-1.7%), SM Prime Holdings (-2.9%), Bank of the Philippine Islands (-2.5%), and Ayala Land (-2.0%), were among those leading the declines.