Share prices closed lower Thursday as profit taking continued to hit the market.
The peso closed up.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was down 71.08 points to 6,234.77, a 1.13 percent drop.
The broader All Shares index was down 22.08 points or 0.66 percent to 3,329.58.
Gainers narrowly edged losers 83 to 82 with 49 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P3.66 billion.
The peso closed at 55.30, up from 55.305 on Wednesday.
The currency opened at 55.37 and hit a high of 55.26 and a low of 55.42. Trading turnover reached $1.21 billion.
Separately, data on Wednesday showed US private payrolls increased less than expected in November, in yet another sign that the labour market is gradually cooling.
Market participants will now focus on the non-farm payrolls report on Friday, which is likely to give a clearer view of the Fed’s future actions.
“Thus far, however, even as labour market metrics turned out to be softer than anticipated, USD continues to rise,” Maybank analysts wrote.
The dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against six major rivals, was at 104.07 at 0650 GMT.
Investors also digested mixed economic data from China, which showed an uptick in exports while imports fell sharply, suggesting that domestic demand was still subdued.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., said the market was sold ahead of the long weekend as investors assessed data indicating falling inflation and jobs report.
Most actively traded BDO Unibank Inc. was down P2.80 to P6.90. Ayala Land Inc. was steady at P31.40. SM Investments Corp. was down P2 to P826. International Container Terminal Services Inc. was down P6 to P229. SM Prime Holdings Inc. was down P0.35 to P32.65. Ayala Corp. was down P20.50 to P640. Bank of the Philippine Islands was down P2.60 to P101.90. GT Capital Holdings Inc. was up P5.50 to P557. Cebu Air Inc. (Convertible Preferred) was down P0.10 to P31.20. JG Summit Holdings Inc. was down P1.10 to P37.80.
