Weak trade figures rekindle worries

02/12/2009

The shares index and the peso both weakened yesterday after the government released Tuesday dismal exports data showing receipts fell 40 percent last December, the worst slide in 20 years.

The index closed 1.0 percent lower which was also weighed down by a fresh plunge on Wall Street overnight, dealers said. The composite index lost 19.82 points to 1,897.75. The all shares index gave up 0.7 percent to end at 1,226.95 points with 48 issues down, 25 up and 59 unchanged. Turnover reached 1.3 billion shares worth P2.1 billion.

The peso closed weaker at 47.07 per dollar at the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. from 46.79 high mark the previous day. The currency opened at 46.90 at a low of 47.23 and a 46.90 high. Total volume reached $915.500 million.

Local share prices were reacting to “the export figures and what happened to the US market,” Rey Gregorio of Pan Asia Securities Corp. told AFP.

The government announced on Tuesday that exports plunged 40.4 percent year on year to $2.7 billion in December on the back of the global economic slowdown. Export receipts for the whole of 2008 were down 2.9 percent from a year earlier to $49.02 billion.

US stocks plunged 4.6 percent to a near three-month low on Tuesday as markets gave a thumbs-down to a plan unveiled by the US Treasury to stabilize the financial system.

“Our market will still be following the lead of the US market although there seems to be some tapering off of the selling,” Gregorio said. AFP

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