By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter

THE MAIN INDEX ended lower on Monday due to sustained investor worries over the novel coronavirus from China.

The 30-member Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gave up 35.78 points or 0.46% to close at 7,587.63 yesterday, while the broader all shares index fell 28.23 points or 0.62% to 4,495.34.

“The local market declined today amid the fears of a Coronavirus contagion and the economic costs it carries,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a text message Monday.

“If this epidemic worsens it will hit first our tourism. It will also cripple the economy of the infected countries, some of which are our top trading and investment partners such as China. Finally, if the disease reaches our country, then it would raise health concerns which could dent on our labor productivity,” he added.

The deadly virus, believed to have come from Wuhan, China, has so far killed 81 and infected more than 2,750 people globally, Reuters reported yesterday. Apart from China, confirmed cases of coronavirus have also been traced in Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Nepal, France, Canada and United States.

In the Philippines, the Health department is currently observing 11 cases of possible coronavirus.

But Mr. Tantiangco said despite being coronavirus-free, the Philippine market suffered from negative investor sentiment due to fears of the unknown.

The market decline from the health concern was spread across global equities. In US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite indices all fell 0.58%, 0.90% and 0.93% respectively on Friday.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Topix indices dove 2.03% and 1.61% respectively and South Korea’s Kospi index lost 0.93% on Monday. Other Asian markets were closed for the Lunar New Year.

Back home, sectoral indices were mixed at the close of trading. Financials gained 4.01 points or 0.22% to 1,814.38; property added 7.43 points or 0.18% to 3,969.75; and mining and oil picked up 7.79 points or 0.09% or 7,975.98.

On the other hand, industrials lost 133.74 points or 1.37% to end at 9,594.98; holding firms shed 51.91 points or 0.70% to 7,296.45; and services dropped 10.32 points or 0.66% to 1,534.34.

Some 1.90 billion issues valued at P4.30 billion switched hands on Monday, up from the 847.15 million issues worth P5.72 billion seen in the previous session.

Trading ended with 119 decliners, 69 advancers and 43 names unchanged.

Foreign investors turned buyers on Monday, recording net purchases of P66.68 million, a reversal from last Friday’s net selling worth P556.51 million. — with Reuters

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