Philippines share prices closed down 0.5 percent on Monday amid jitters in Asia after a US economic stimulus package to combat a feared recession failed to rally Wall Street, dealers said. The composite index ended down 16 points at 3,152.30, its lowest close since August 22 when it settled at 3,139.46.
It was the sixth consecutive trading day when prices fell. The broader all-share index lost 2.94 points to 1,952.32. "While the market is ripe for bargain-hunting, the volatility brought about by the US woes necessitates caution," said Jose Vistan of AB Capital Securities.
There were 53 decliners and 43 advancers, while 56 stocks were unchanged. Volume amounted to 1.3 billion shares valued at 3.9 billion pesos (95.14 million dollars.) The local currency traded at 40.988 to the dollar. The Philippine benchmark index has fallen about 10 percent over the past six sessions and is down nearly 13 percent so far this year.
"We feel the sell-off has been overdone and it's time for slow accumulation," said Gomer Tan of Regina Capital Development Corp. The ailing US economy is the biggest market for Philippine exports. It is also home to millions of expat Filipino workers whose remittances back home help prop up the Philippine economy.
"Conditions in the market are very uncertain," said Rommel Macapagal, chairman of Westlink Global Equities. "Investors doubt (US President George) Bush's economic stimulus package. They are unsure if this would be enough to revive the US economy."
Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT), the country's biggest company by market value, fell 55 pesos to a four-month low of 2,770 pesos. Globe Telecom Inc, the country's second-biggest carrier, lost 10 pesos to 1,500 pesos. Bargain-hunters chased property developer Ayala Land Inc, which rose 50 centavos to 14 pesos.
The Manila Electric Co or Meralco was up 50 centavos at 71.50 pesos following two block sales involving a total of 84.6 million shares, which were sold at 80.91 pesos apiece. No other details were immediately available.