(Bloomberg) — Philippine stocks fell for a fifth day, pushing the nation’s benchmark index into a bear market, amid concern over potential global headwinds and disappointing domestic economic data.
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The nation’s benchmark equity gauge slid to the lowest level in more than two years as the prospect of higher US tariffs threatened by US President Donald Trump damped the optimism of global equity investors. A government report published Thursday showed the local economy grew slower than analysts expected, hurt by sluggish investment, consumption and farm output.
“The bout of continuing weakness is likely being underpinned by the lack of a positive catalyst,” said Rastine Mackie Mercado, an analyst at Chinabank Securities in Manila. Investors are also awaiting the release of fourth-quarter and full-year company’s earnings reports, he said.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index slipped 4% Friday to 5,862.59, more than 20% below its October high, and the lowest closing level since October 2022. Volumes climbed during the selloff with 138.8 million shares changing hands, the highest daily turnover in four months.
The nation’s gross domestic product rose 5.2% last quarter from a year earlier, the statistics agency said on Thursday. That fell short of the 5.5% median estimate in a Bloomberg survey and matched the 5.2% pace for July to September.
The weaker-than-expected Philippine economic growth disappointed investors, said Claire Alviar, an analyst at Philstocks Financial in Manila. Uncertainties over President Donald Trump’s policies are also weighing down the market, she said.
Among the biggest decliners Friday, conglomerate San Miguel Corp. sank 20% to its lowest close since January 2016, while Alliance Global Group Inc. slipped the same amount to its weakest level in more than four years. All except two firms in the 30-company benchmark index basket dropped.
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