Stocks pull back as investors take wait-and-see stance

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine stock market opened the week on a listless note as investors opted to adopt a wait-and-see stance on the absence of positive catalysts.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Composite index (PSEi) closed 0.06 percent or 3.90 points lower at 6,312.03, while the broader All Shares index fell 5.90 points or 0.17 percent.

Philstocks Financials’ Claire Alviar said the market closed flat as investors continue to wait for earnings results.

The sectoral gauges were mixed with holding firms, property and mining and oil ending in the green. On the other hand, financials, services and mining and oil finished in negative territory.

Total value turnover stood at P5.13 billion while market breadth was negative, 92 to 85 while 55 issues were unchanged.

Yesterday’s active stocks were led by Semirara Mining & Power Corp. which lost 3.25 percent to close at P40.15 per share. This was followed by ICTSI which lost 5.30 percent to P183.90 per share; SM Prime Holdings which rallied 1.-9 percent to P37 per share; BDO which tumbled 4.77 percent to P113.80 per share; Meralco which was down 3.76 percent to P12.80 per share and SM Investments Corp. which lost 0.58 percent to P780 per share.

COL Investment Management president Marvin Fausto said sentiment in the market has shifted to bullish from neutral with many investors believing that the second half of the year would see the market in a mostly neutral stance.

In a briefing yesterday, he said the economy is expected to grow much better this year.

The rise in interest rates, he said, gives investors an opportunity to ride on high-yielding bond investments.

Apil Lynn Tan, COL chief equity strategist said the market has actually been performing well since the start of the year until the war in Ukraine erupted in February and when the US Federal Reserve began raising rates in March.

The economic slowdown, she said, could continue to hurt corporate profits and thus, the market could stay depressed.

Tan said, the economic team of the Marcos administration’s economic team members are credible and have a track record in steering the economy forward.

Juanis Barredo, COL chief technical analyst, said the PSEi’s is at 6,130 to 6,050.