PSEi falls below 6,000 as economic concerns linger

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April 18, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — The local stock market failed to stay above the 6,000 level, closing the week in the red territory as economic concerns dampened investor sentiment.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEI) slumped by 1.06 percent or 64.56 points to end yesterday’s session at 5,999.13.

The broader All Shares index also retreated by 0.71 percent or 24.03 points to 3,374.78.

Philstocks Financial research manager Japhet Tantiangco said the local market pulled back as investors worry over the local economic challenges brought by the Middle East war, including the expected rise in inflation moving forward and the possibility of policy tightening by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), both of which are seen to weigh on economic growth.

“The PSEi corrected lower after gaining for two straight trading days after the recent hawkish signals from BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. in terms of possible future monetary tightening or rate hike/s that could increasing borrowing costs and could also slow down the economy in an effort to slow down inflation back to the BSP’s target range of two to four percent,” RCBC chief economist Michael Ricafort said.

All sectors were down, with holding firms taking the biggest hit with a 1.91-percent plunge.

Decliners overpowered advancers, 100 to 86, while 67 issues did not change hands.

Total value turnover stood at P7.44 billion, slightly lower from the P7.8 billion recorded the previous day.

ICTSI kept its position as the top traded stock, slipping by 0.77 percent to P709.50 per share. It was followed by BDO Unibank, which went up by 0.76 percent to P119.50 and BPI, which fell by 1.49 percent to P99.20.