MANILA, Philippines – The stock market trekked south for a third session as euro zone worries eclipsed the US central bank’s pledge to keep interest rates low.
The Philippine Stock Exchange composite index gave up 58.81 points or 1.26 percent to 4,611.68, while the broader all-shares index shed 19.69 points or 0.62 percent to 3,137.67.
Advancers and losers were even at 84, while 45 stocks were unchanged. A total of 6.25 billion shares worth P7.17 billion changed hands.
"The local market was down as Europe continued to struggle to contain its sovereign debt crisis. US Federal Reserve's signal of monetary easing failed to offset worries from the euro zone," said Freya Natividad, investment analyst at 2TradeAsia.com.
"For the market to reverse the current trend, European monetary officials must come up with firmer solutions to its debt problems," she said.
Analysts pegged market support at the 4,560 to 4,570 range, and set resistance at 4,650.
"We saw continued profit-taking on Thursday, but tomorrow can be a different story. It’s just a reality check for investors," said Astro del Castillo, managing director at First Grade Finance Inc.
The Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday night said it would maintain interest rates at their present lows through 2014, causing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to climb 0.6 percent to 12,756.96. This was Wall Street’s best finish since May 10.
