The absence of a positive catalyst, coupled with global uncertainty, soured market sentiment and compelled players to cash in on gains during the last minutes of trade.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., said investor sentiment has soured “amid fading optimism over US-EU trade talks and heightened geopolitical risks.”
The bellwether PSEi shed 0.2 percent or 12.99 points to 6,412.81. The broader All Shares was steady at 3,753.1.
Losers outnumbered gainers 92 to 89, with 61 stocks unchanged. Trading value reached P4.84 billion.
Market data showed foreign buying reached P2.52 billion, and foreign selling amounted to P2.7 billion.
Foreign investors were net sellers at P179.92 million. Foreign funds accounted for 55.78 percent of total trade.
Japhet Tantiangco, analyst at Philstocks Financial Inc., said market players cashed in on gains in the final minutes of trade. The market moved mostly sideways throughout the day.
“Lack of positive local catalysts caused investors to exit the market,” he said.
Global uncertainty continued to weigh on market sentiment, he added.
Prior to the opening bell, a US federal court blocked President Donald Trump’s unilateral tariffs on nearly all of America’s trading partners, after finding the president overstepped his authority by imposing across-the-board duties on imports from most countries around the world.
The Court of International Trade said the US Constitution gives Congress exclusive authority to regulate commerce with other countries that is not overridden by the president’s emergency powers to safeguard the US economy.
The court invalidated with immediate effect all of Trump’s orders on tariffs since January that were rooted in the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law meant to address “unusual and extraordinary” threats during a national emergency.
The White House appealed the decision and questioned the authority of the federal court.
Most actively traded BDO Unibank Inc. shed P1.30 to P162.80. International Container Terminal Services Inc. gained P2 to P412.20. GT Capital Holdings Inc. rose P12 to P587. Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. increased by P1.60 to P76.80. SM Prime Holdings Inc. lost P0.05 to P22.90. Bloomberry Resorts Corp. declined by P0.14 to P4.51. Bank of the Philippine Islands shed P1 to P138. SM Investments Corp. dropped P5 to P846. Jollibee Foods Corp. shed P0.20 to P238.40. (with a report from Reuters)
