Peso ends strong, PSEi down at trading week’s end

The peso gained 0.24 centavos, boosting the local currency to 52.86 to a dollar from 53.1. (Photo: qvist / ShutterStock)

MANILA — The Philippine peso strengthened against the greenback on Friday while the local stock market closed in the red due to heavy sell-off before the holidays.

The peso gained 0.24 centavos, boosting the local currency to 52.86 to a dollar from 53.1.

It opened the day at the same level on Thursday at 53.15.

The currency pair traded between 52.86 and 53.22 bringing the average level for the day at 53.06.

Before the long holiday period, the volume of trade increased to USD726.55 million Friday from the previous day’s USD685.92 million.

While the peso ended strong, the local shares closed in red territories.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 83.7 points or 1.11 percent to 7,479.91 points.

All shares likewise shed by 42.55 points or 0.94 percent to 4,501.58 points.

“With the US experiencing a massive sell-off in December and analysts pointing to a recession that could occur, Philippine shares were sold heavily right before the long holiday period. All three US stock indexes registered 52-week closing lows,” said Regina Capital Managing Director Luis Limlingan.

All counters were down on Friday, with biggest drop registered in mining and oil ending at 7,943.55 points, losing by 116.67 points or 1.45 percent.

This is followed by property, which went down to 3,620.82 points; holding firms to 7,368.92 points; industrial to 11,010.54 points; financials to 1,756.28 points; and services to 1,450.55 points.