Share prices closed lower Monday as the market struggled for direction, with concerns over the economy outweighing any positive momentum.
“The market was largely driven by selling pressure today, with prices seemingly stalled as investors awaited a new catalyst,” Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital and Development Corp., said.
With most companies having released second-quarter results ahead of the August 15 deadline, he said attention may shift to upcoming US inflation data, which could influence the Federal Reserve’s next policy move.
SB Equities Inc. added that traders were also watching the outcome of US-China trade discussions set for Tuesday.
The benchmark PSEi fell 1.34 percent, or 85.02 points, to 6,254.36, while the broader All Shares dropped 0.85 percent, or 32.16 points, to 3,735.25.
Losers outnumbered gainers 141 to 70, with 41 unchanged. Turnover reached P7.1 billion from 84,830 trades covering 908.82 million shares. Foreign investors were net buyers of P421.37 million, with total purchases at P2.7 billion against P2.28 billion in sales.
“The local market opened the week on a negative tone, as the lack of fresh positive leads allowed worries over the local economy’s outlook to take over sentiment,” Japhet Tantiangco, research manager at Philstocks Financial Inc., said.
He said he observed investor unease about how the economy could accelerate even amid global uncertainty, particularly from US protectionist policies.
