Stocks down on profit-taking

MANILA, Philippines—Profit taking hit local stocks on Tuesday after the benchmark stock exchange index breached the 7,800 level.

The PSEi ended the session at 7,723.14, down 59.43 points, or 0.76 percent. The all-shares index was also down 0.57 percent, or 25.69 points, to 4,485.54.

Most sub-indices ended in the red, led by mining and oil, down 1.8 percent, and industrial firms, down 1.33 percent. Only services posted a gain of 0.35 percent.

Data from the PSE showed that a total of 3.46 billion shares changed hands for P19.15 billion. Losers and gainers were almost evenly split, with 97 companies closing in the red and 90 companies ending positive. Another 48 companies closed unchanged.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. led the list of most actively traded stocks with a gain of 0.13 percent to P3,102.

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