It was a bloody day for Asian stocks on Thursday, October 29, with the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) leading the decline at -2.01%.

Piper Tan of Philstocks noted that this was the worst sell-off since August 3, as the PSEi followed the downward trend of the United States markets.

Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital also noted that the upcoming US election and the surge in COVID-19 cases abroad also made investors jittery.

Wall Street’s main indices tanked on Wednesday, October 28, with the S&P 500 falling 3.5% at the close.

Of the PSEi members, only SM Prime (0.9%) and Meralco (1%) inched up, while Emperador traded flat. 

Net foreign selling dragged on for the 3rd straight day, hitting P942.9 million.

Decliners led advancers, 147 to 58, while 52 were unchanged.

Corporate news

Robinsons Retail – Gokongwei-led Robinsons Retail Holdings Incorporated (RRHI) posted a net income of P2.4 billion in the first 9 months of the year, 13.9% lower than in the same period last year.

RRHI noted that 3rd quarter earnings showed an upward trend, indicating that the worst bottomed out in the 2nd quarter when the strict lockdowns were enforced.

Consolidated net sales were down by 5.7% to P109.6 billion.

Cemex – The company booked a net income of P758.1 million for the first 9 months of 2020, 13% lower than the P874.7 million recorded in the same period last year, due to the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on operating earnings.

Consolidated net sales dipped by 17% to P15.1 billion. 

China Bank – The bank saw its earnings rise by 23% to P8.2 billion in the January-September period.

Loans and deposits rose by 6%, while net interest income jumped by 35%.

Fee-based income likewise increased by 35%.

China Bank’s non-performing loans ratio settled at 2.5%.

Aboitiz Equity Ventures – The Securities and Exchange Commission gave the green light for the company to offer and issue its second tranche of retail bonds from its P30-billion peso-denominated fixed-rate retail bonds registration program.

The second tranche bonds, with a principal amount of P5 billion and an oversubscription option of up to P5 billion, will be issued on November 16.

The offer period will begin on October 29 and end on November 6.

Aboitiz intends to list the bonds with the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corporation. – Rappler.com