PSEi falls to 6,200 range as traders lock in gains

Philippine shares retreated on Tuesday as investors pocketed gains following the market’s sharp jump in the previous session, and as cautious sentiment persisted amid continued uncertainty over peace talks between the United States and Iran.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) went down by 0.6% or 38.08 points to close at 6,296.64, while the broader all shares index declined by 0.43% or 14.81 points to end at 3,415.35.

“The local bourse ended lower as investors locked in profits following the previous session’s gains,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

“Market sentiment remained cautious, with traders maintaining short-term positions as uncertainty surrounding the US-Iran peace talks continued to weigh on risk appetite,” he added.

Mr. Limlingan said the index topped near the 6,300 level amid continued profit taking and subdued buying interest.

The PSEi opened Tuesday’s session at 6,321.42, down from Monday’s close of 6,334.72. Still, it climbed to a high of 6,368.03 but was unable to hold on to its gains as it ended near its intraday low of 6,293.71.

“The local market pulled back amid concerns over the volatile situation between the US and Iran. This comes as Iran denied that talks with the US for a deal has been ongoing,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Manager Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message. “Iran’s denial also sent global oil prices higher and weakened the local currency.”

The peso dropped by 23.5 centavos to close at PHP 61.165 a dollar on Tuesday, Bankers Association of the Philippines data showed.

US President Donald J. Trump said on Monday that talks with Iran were under way, warning that it was a “last chance” for Tehran to sign a good deal to end the five-month-old war, but Iran denied that any negotiations were being held or planned, Reuters reported.

Most sectoral indices closed lower. Property decreased by 1.05% or 20.08 points to 1,898.60; holding firms went down by 0.95% or 42.89 points to 4,464.80; financials shed 0.83% or 16.11 points to end at 1,916.51; and services dropped by 0.19% or 6.55 points to 3,485.88.

Meanwhile, mining and oil increased by 0.55% or 95.03 points to 17,222.73, and industrials edged up by 0.02% or 1.29 points to 8,088.54.

Decliners outnumbered advancers, 102 to 84, while 54 names were unchanged.

“There were only six index gainers for the day, led by Century Pacific Food, Inc., rising 3.86% to PHP 32.25. Ayala Land, Inc. was the main index laggard, falling 3.75% to PHP 15.40,” Mr. Tantiangco said.

Value turnover went down to PHP 4.5 billion on Tuesday with 594.009 million shares traded from the PHP 5.8 billion with 611.77 million shares that changed hands on Monday.

Net foreign buying increased to PHP 249.91 million from PHP 75.66 million in the previous session. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera