Market to remain listless this week, say analysts

The stock market will remain listless this week given lingering concerns over weaker economic figures and corporate earnings as well as a deteriorating labor market.

Stock portal 2tradeasia.com said trading is expected to be thin with the immediate support pegged at 1,800.

Last week, the main composite index fell 32 points, or 1.9 percent to 1,825 due to the continued contraction of the US economy.

Jun Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities said the 2.55 percent drop of the main index in January, extended last year’s meltdown to a negative 49.6 percent.

“The January barometer suggests that the January outcome reflects the expected full year outcome of the market.  As we move forward, the same premises of last year’s growth may well present the biggest of challenges this year,” Calaycay said.

Calaycay said investors are also monitoring employment figures as some companies have already laid off some workers.

He said the main engines of growth of the Philppine economy – services (business process outsourcing firms) and OFW remittances – are facing tough challenges this year with exports being threatened by the recession in the US and Japan.

Eduardo Banaag Jr. of First Metro Investment, warned that the economy will slow as the financial turmoil spreads.

“The Philippine economy will slow markedly, as the biggest economies slow simultaneously. The difference is 2009 will be worse than 2001,” Banaag said.