Philippine Markets Shut as Waist-High Storm Waters Flood Capital

(Bloomberg) -- Philippine financial markets were closed on Tuesday along with government offices and schools as heavy overnight rains flooded parts of the capital Manila and nearby provinces.

Currency, stocks and bonds trading were suspended after the office of President Rodrigo Duterte halted work in government offices, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Nestor Espenilla said. At least five domestic flights were canceled, according to the Manila International Airport Authority.

Flood waters were waist-deep in some parts of Manila, blocking several traffic arteries including the Epifanio de los Santos Avenue connecting the northern and southern parts of the city, according to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority.

With another typhoon moving closer to the northeastern Philippine coast, the current storm is forecast to land in Quezon or Aurora province north of the capital on Tuesday afternoon, the local weather bureau said.

The Philippines, battered annually by an average of 20 cyclones that form over the Pacific Ocean, is among countries most vulnerable to climate change. Super Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest storms in the world to hit land, killed more than 6,000 people in 2013.

Espenilla said there is an “automatic market suspension” if government offices were shut before 9 a.m. The Philippine Stock Exchange and the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. also issued advisories on suspension.

--With assistance from Ian Sayson Andreo Calonzo and Ditas Lopez

To contact the reporters on this story: Clarissa Batino in Manila at cbatino@bloomberg.net, Cecilia Yap in Manila at cyap19@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Daniel Ten Kate at dtenkate@bloomberg.net, Jason Koutsoukis, Karl Lester M. Yap