Share prices ended lower Monday as investors took profits.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index was down 34.36 points to 6,164.89, a 0.55 percent drop.
The broader all shares index was down 21.46 points to 3,821.27, a 0.56 percent drop.
Losers edged gainers 127 to 79, with 49 stocks unchanged. Trading turnover reached P4.48 billion.
The peso closed at 48.065 to the dollar, down from 47.945. It opened at 47.94, an intraday high and hit a low of 48.085. Trading turnover reached $937.64 million.
Asian currencies were flat as the dollar pulled slightly off last week’s three-month lows. The Philippine peso stood out with a 0.2 percent drop.
“Philippine shares kicked off Monday on a weak note on concerns about the Federal Reserve Policy in the face of rising inflation pressures. In particular sentiment was pulled down as the US market has long traded at a premium to global peers but the trend has been reinforced by the steady transformation of the index towards technology-orientated companies that are growing quickly and are very profitable,” said Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp.
“The market expects the rotation trades to continue to play out with the vaccine rollouts and reopening of the economy. Strong economic data has put pressure on growth stocks, which are more likely to be impacted by potential interest hike,” Limlingan added.
Most actively traded BDO Unibank Inc. was down P0.90 to P101.10. Megaworld Corp. was down P0.16 to P2.70. Puregold Price Club Inc. was down P0.30. to P35. Jollibee Foods Corp. was up P2.10 to P179.70. Dito CME Holdings Corp. was down P0.52 to P8.70. PLDT Inc was up P23 to P1,259. Ayala Corp. was up P3.50 to P703.50. Ayala Land Inc. was down P0.55 to P31.60. Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. was up P0.40 to P45.30. Converge Information and Communication Technology Solutions Inc. was down P0.50 to P19.90.
