Shares flat on catalyst lack, investor caution

The stock marked closed flat on Wednesday without any solid catalyst, keeping wary investors on the sidelines.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) declined by 0.03 percent or 1.56 points to finish at 5,892.72 while the wider All Shares inched up by 0.03 percent or 1.21 points to end at 3,545.14.

Philstocks Financial Inc. research analyst Claire Alviar said investors were waiting for strong positive catalysts to raise local stocks to the 6,000 level.

Negative sentiment overseas continues to spill into the bourse, she added.

“Investors weighed concerns over reports of” a resurgence of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases in the United Kingdom, “which may lead to further restrictions,” Alviar said.

Her remarks came after the British government, to contain this resurgence, on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) ordered pubs to close early and advised people to go back to working from home to prevent a second national lockdown.

Pubs, bars and restaurants were ordered to shut at 10 p.m. (local time) across England and Scotland, and new limits were announced on public gatherings like weddings.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also called a halt to the planned phased return of fans to live sporting events in England from October 1, despite huge losses and fears some clubs could go under.

Alviar said value turnover remained tepid at P4.4 billion, lower than the year-to-date average of P6.5 billion, as investors waited for new local developments in the coronavirus pandemic.

As of Wednesday, the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the country soared by 2,833 to 294,591, of which 58,217 are active. Of the total, 231,373 have recovered and 5,091 did not.

AAA Equities Head of Research Christopher Mangun attributed Wednesday’s performance to
thin trading volumes of blue chips.

“Investors have been focusing on second-liners, [as seen] in the higher-than-usual volatility on several issues,” he said.

General sentiment remains cautious despite the improvement in economic activity, he added.

Wall Street rallied overnight, with the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq rising by 0.52 percent, 1.05 percent and 1.71 percent, respectively.

Most Asian markets also rose. Shanghai climbed by 0.17 percent, Hong Kong inched up by 0.01 percent, Seoul grew by 0.03 percent, Singapore rallied by 0.16 percent and Ho Chi Minh improved by 0.7 percent. Tokyo shed 0.06 percent, Jakarta declined by 0.57 percent and Bangkok was down 0.25 percent.

In Manila, the mining and oil sector led decliners at 1.05 percent while industrial and holding firms gained 0.88 percent and 0.19 percent, respectively.

Total volume turnover was at 1.47 billion shares, valued at P4.45 billion.

Gainers led losers, 92 to 90, with 56 securities unchanged.

WITH A REPORT FROM AFP