PSEi, peso dip amid Iran-Israel tensions ahead of BSP meeting

Philippine shares and the peso weakened due to escalating tensions between Iran and Israel and ahead of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) monetary policy meeting.

The PSEi dropped by 0.50 percent to 6,337.43 on Wednesday, with all sectoral indices closing in the negative territory except for the Industrial sector, which rose by 0.45 percent.

Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital Development Corp. noted that the conflict and weaker-than-expected US retail sales are raising concerns about consumer spending.

Locals remained on the sidelines awaiting the BSP's decision, with many forecasting a rate cut.

Fifteen out of sixteen analysts expect the Monetary Board to cut the policy rate by 25 basis points (bp) to 5.25% at Thursday's review.

The BSP resumed its easing cycle in April with a 25-bp reduction, following a surprise pause in February.

The Philippine peso depreciated against the US dollar, closing at 56.98 from 56.7 on Tuesday, with a trading volume of USD1.27 billion.