Bright Morning - 18 August 2026

Bringing the latest market news closer to you.

Macroeconomy

• Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz sank to a new low on Saturday, per Kpler data. Only five vessels passed through the Strait on Saturday, compared with 31 the previous weekend. A fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is set to expire today while talks have stalled.
• The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas signaled it remains prepared to adjust monetary policy further as upside risks to inflation accelerate and spillover effects threaten to broaden across the economy. BSP Governor EliM. Remolona Jr. said that while price pressures are expected to moderate gradually over the medium term.

Fixed Income

• Peso government bond yields traded sideways amid a lack of fresh catalysts. Trading activity was light across tenors.
• US Treasury yields continued to climb amid a deluge of corporate bond supply and higher oil prices. 12 companies issued a combined USD 9.1 billion of bonds on Monday while renewed middle east tensions sent oil prices higher.

Equities

• Global equities fell 0.35% as weaker-than-expected U.S. retail sales data as well as escalating Middle East tensions and higher oil prices weighed on investor sentiment.
• The PSEi ended lower yesterday, down 35.50 pts (-0.56% DoD) to 6,261.80, as remittances for June marked the slowest growth at 1.7% in more than four years, alongside the economic impact of severe flooding nationwide.

Daily Market Movements