PHL shares retreat on profit-taking

Philippine share prices closed in the red on Tuesday as market players cashed in on gains after the local stock barometer hit a fresh eight-month high.

The bellwether PSEi shed 69.95 points or 0.97% to 7,108.67 at the closing bell. The broader All Shares lost 25.71 points or 0.60% to 4,228.55.

“The PSEi ended with substantial losses as selling pressure picked up, which was to be expected as it hovered around its eight-month high,” AAA Equities head of research Chris Mangun said.

“The selldown was mainly due to profit-taking,” he added.

Foreign funds bought P5.216 billion shares and sold P5.837 billion for a net selling position of P621.19 million.

“Trading volumes came in at a whopping P12.4 billion, more than double the daily average of about P6 billion as investors remain confident in the current environment,” Mangun said.

More than 8.273 billion shares valued at P12.95 billion, changed hands. Decliners led advancers, 134 to 1010, and 40 issues were unchanged.

“The PSEi may rebound and begin to move higher after today's correction as investors are optimistic that quarantine restrictions will be lifted by the end of the month,” Mangun said. — BM, GMA News