Share prices ended mixed Monday as investors took to profit- taking and window-dressing.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was down 12.55 points to 6,937.96, a 0.18 percent drop.
The broader all shares index was up 15.03 points to 4,244.61, a 0.35 percent hike.
Gainers edged losers 107 to 96 with 43 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P5.35 billion.
The peso closed at 48.645 to the dollar, down from 48.481 on Friday.
The currency opened at 48.50, an intraday high and hit a low of 48.685. Trading turnover reached $999.3 million.
Most regional currencies were pressured as the US dollar held firm after slightly softer-than-expected US inflation continued to keep investors on edge about potential monetary policy tightening from the Federal Reserve, Reuters reported.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., said the market trading sideways is due to investors preparing for the window dressing, “rebalancing portfolios ahead of the close of the semester.”
“Many are turning their attention to the release of ISM manufacturing data, unemployment rate, and trade balance among others. Many are also betting that the current heightened inflation will only be temporary as the economy continues to traverse its path to recovery,” Limlingan added.
Japhet Tantiangco, analyst at Philstocks Financial Inc., said some investors took to profit- taking after the market’s uptick last week.
“Market sentiment was also weighed by renewed COVID-19 concerns amid the risks brought by the Delta variant,” he said.
Most actively traded SM Prime Holdings Inc. was down P0.10 to P37.70. BDO Unibank Inc. was down P1.80 to P113.20. Ayala Land Inc. was down P0.30 to P36.70. International Container Terminal Services Inc. was down P2.60 to P161.40. SM Investments Corp. was up P10 to P1,005. Ayala Corp. was down P8 to P802. AC Energy Corp. was up P0.24 to P8.42. Cirtek Holdings Philippines Corp. was up P0.02 to P6.62. Megaworld Corp. was up P0.06 to P3.30. GlobeTelecom Inc. was down P13 to P1,840.
