PHL shares drop as coronavirus cases hit 80,000
By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter
LOCAL SHARES dropped on Monday as investors were worried over the likelihood Metro Manila will be placed under strict lockdown measures again.
The 30-member Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) erased 142.32 points or 2.37% to close at 5,860.94 on Monday. The broader all shares index shaved off 65.18 points or 1.84% to end at 3,467.83.
Weak investor sentiment can be linked to the rise in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases to 80,448 on Sunday, Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Associate Claire T. Alviar said in a mobile message.
Malacañang earlier warned Metro Manila may be put under stricter quarantine measures if the COVID-19 tally hits 85,000 by end-July. With less than five days left before the month ends and the government’s ceiling being less than 5,000 cases away, many investors chose to leave the market early.
“Investors unloaded some shares amid the higher chance of more stringent community quarantine brought by the mounting COVID-19 cases in the country,” Ms. Alviar said.
“Added to it was the negative sentiment from companies as they gradually release disappointing second-quarter results,” she said.
Investors also chose to stay on the sidelines while waiting for the State of the Nation Address of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said.
Mr. Duterte was scheduled to deliver his speech past trading hours on Monday. The investing public was waiting to hear the government’s plans for economic recovery amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most sectoral indices ended Monday’s session in red territory. Financials led the pack, falling 50.80 points or 4.29% to 1,132.82. Three of the five most actively traded stocks on Monday were Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., BDO Unibank, Inc. and Bank of the Philippine Islands, which shed 4.85%, 3.28% and 6.47%, respectively.
Other sectoral indices that declined were holding firms, which shrank 150.02 points or 2.39% to 6,118.96; services, which contracted 30.76 points or 2.2% to 1,361.63; property, which dropped 46.66 points or 1.59% to 2,877.84; and industrials, which declined by 75.19 points or 1.02% to 7,261.60.
Mining and oil was the sole sub-index to record gains, climbing 215.84 points or 4.2% to 5,346.28 at the end of the session. This can be attributed to the reopening of mining companies previously shut down by former Environmental Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez, Ms. Alviar said.
Value turnover stood at P3.94 billion with 3.1 billion issues switching hands, up from Friday’s value turnover of P2.94 billion.
Decliners outnumbered advancers, 123 against 72, while 48 names ended unchanged.
Foreign investors returned to selling on Monday, with net outflows surging to P1.02 billion from the net inflows of P10.04 million seen the previous session.
