Stocks track decline in US markets

MANILA, Philippines — Weak sentiment prevailed throughout the trading session yesterday, dragging the index down as investors shifted focus on the US markets.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index or PSEi finished 61.03 points or 0.93 percent lower to 6,439.39 while the broader All Shares index slipped 24.49 points or 0.61 percent to close at 3,964.34.

Market breadth was negative, 108 to 92, while 52 issues were unchanged.

“The local market closed at its intraday low on last-minute selling. Late in the session, the US issued a ‘do not travel’ advisory to the Philippines given the high number of COVID-19 cases,” said AB Capital Securities in a market commentary.

Foreign funds were net sellers anew with P777 million.

Chris Mangun of AAA Southeast Equities said the PSEi swung back and ended lower again due to losses in a couple of large-cap blue chips.

“The trading day started slow as prices moved sideways but selling pressure gradually picked up until the end of the session. There was a large selloff right at the close which pushed several blue chips as well as the main index to end at their lowest levels for the day. The increased selling pressure on blue chips may be a sign of frustration from investors due to the lack of concrete positive developments on the health crisis,” he said.

Around Asia, shares skidded after Wall Street closed lower for a second straight day, led by drops in technology companies and banks.