Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Stocks slip as action focuses on Equitable, Banco de Oro (3:10 p.m.)
MANILA -- Philippine stocks slipped in a tepid session Wednesday, with much of the action centered on the prospect of a merger between commercial banks Equitable PCI and Banco de Oro.
The benchmark 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 5.91 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,296.78, after rising 1.2 percent over the past two sessions.
Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. contributed mainly to the loss, shedding 1 percent to P1,905 after rising 2.1 percent earlier in the week.
Equitable PCI, the country's third-largest lender by assets, climbed 5.3 percent to P79, while Banco de Oro, ranked seventh in the industry by assets, advanced 4.3 percent to P36.50.
On Tuesday, Banco de Oro parent SM Investments said it will make a tender offer, together with its affiliates, for all Equitable PCI shares on top of the 34 percent it already holds in the bank.
Analysts said SM's offer could be the solution to the stalemate involving the much-anticipated merger of Banco de Oro and Equitable PCI - a union that could create the country's largest bank by assets.
SM Investments rose 0.5 percent to P218. Another SM-controlled commercial bank, China Bank, rose 0.7 percent to P700.
Gainers led decliners 59 to 35, while 57 stocks were unchanged. (AP) |
