Manila stocks decline

Manila shares slipped on Tuesday, weighed down by high oil prices and US security concerns, but dominant telecoms company Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co (PLDT) rose on solid earnings results.
Shares in PLDT rose 1.2 percent after it reported strong quarterly profit in line with market forecasts.
Second-ranked Globe Telecom, jointly owned by conglomerate Ayala Corp and Singapore Telecommunications Ltd, also rose 1.2 percent after it posted a 29 percent jump in profit after the market closed on Monday.
The main stock index closed down 0.16 percent at 1,562.03 points, despite the gains in telecoms issues.
The B shares of the country's largest power firm, Manila Electric Co, jumped 6.2 percent to 21.50 pesos after falling sharply in the previous two trading sessions after a court voided the unbundling of its power rates which came with a rate increase starting in June last year.
"The market was a mixed bag. We saw profit-taking on some Ayala companies while telecom companies like PLDT and Globe were up," said Astro del Castillo, managing director at First Grade Holdings.
"Investors were cautious due to high crude prices, which could again pressure inflation and eventually have a ripple effect on the economy. Security worries are also keeping investors on the sidelines," he said. The United States raised the security alert level to high on Sunday following information that the al Qaeda group was planning attacks on international financial institutions such as the New York Stock Exchange, World Bank, and Citigroup.
Conglomerate Ayala Corp slipped 1.82 percent, or 10 centavos, to 5.40 pesos, while its banking unit, Bank of the Philippine Islands, shed 1.20 percent to 41 pesos.
Oil refiner Petron Corp lost 3.57 percent to 2.70 pesos while mall developer SM Prime Holdings dipped 1.72 percent to 5.70 pesos.
In the broader market, losers outpaced gainers 39 to 33, while the prices of 41 issues were unchanged. Turnover narrowed to 567.56 million pesos from 712.15 million pesos.
San Miguel, Southeast Asia's largest food and beverage firm, is set to release its earnings on Thursday while Ayala Corp is scheduled to disclose its earnings on August 11.