Manila: The Philippine peso was able to keep its footing against the US dollar on Tuesday after days of weakness, but the local bourse's main index slipped further due to selling pressures. The local currency finished the trade at 58.19 from its 58.14 close Monday. It opened the day sideways at 58.05 and traded between 58.37 and 58.03. Average for the day stood at 58.14. Volume rose to USD1.69 billion, from Monday's USD1.47 billion.

According to Philippines News Agency, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) declined by 0.74 percent to 5,953.46 points, and the All Shares by 0.43 percent to 3,620.79 points. Most of the sectoral gauges also ended down, led by the Property after it went down 2.03 percent. It was trailed by the Services, 1.13 percent; Holding Firms, 1.03 percent; and Industrial, 0.42 percent. Mining and Oil and Financials, however, rose by 1.45 percent and 0.31 percent, respectively.

Volume reached 1.57 billion, amounting to PHP9.09 billion. Decliners exceeded advancers at 129 to 79, while 45 shares were unchanged. "The Philippine market remains in the red after seven consecutive trading days. Selling pressure across the board persists, as investors remain cautious about the overall state of the market. In addition, domestic uncertainties and the weakening peso continue to weigh heavily on investor confidence," Luis Limlingan, Regina Capital Development Corporation head of sales, said.