Philippines’ PLDT, Globe shares drop on Duterte closure, takeover threats

MANILA (Reuters) – Shares in the Philippines biggest telecommunication companies PLDT Inc and Globe Telecom Inc fell on Tuesday after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened closure or government takeover because of what he described as “lousy service”.

Shares in PLDT, part-owned by Japan’s NTT DoCoMo Inc <9437.T> and Hong Kong’s First Pacific Co Ltd <0142.HK>, fell 2.42%, while Globe, backed by Singapore’s Singtel Group , dropped 0.5% at the opening bell.

PLDT slipped as low as 3.6% and Globe sank as much as 2.99% in the first 10 minutes of trades, compared with a 0.9% drop of the broader stock index <.PSI>.

The Philippine leader lashed out at the telecoms firms during his annual state of the nation address on Monday, giving them until December to improve service.

(Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Editing by Ed Davies)