The local stock barometer ended flat on the first day of the so-called “ghost month” on Tuesday as investors chose to be cautious as the index neared all-time highs.
The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index shed 0.8 percent or 0.01 percent to close at 8,015.93 while regional markets were mostly firmer.
Although the PSEi has hovered above the 8,000 for the last few days, this is still not seen as a decisive breakout.
With the index nearing the all-time high finish of 8,127.48 seen on April 10, 2015, many investors have either pocketed gains or desisted from taking new positions.
The PSEi was led lower by the financial, services and property sub-indices while the industrial, holding firm and mining/oil counters ended higher.
Value turnover for the day amounted to P6.12 billion. There were 112 decliners that overwhelmed 91 advancers while 37 stocks were unchanged.
The PSEi was weighed down by SM Prime, BDO, GT Capital and Megaworld, which all slipped by over 1 percent.
Ayala Land, SM Investments, Security Bank and Meralco also contributed to the decline.
On the other hand, Jollibee rose by 2.04 percent while Metrobank gained 1.37 percent. URC, ICTSI, BPI and DMCI also firmed up.
Outside of the PSEi, one notable gainer was Philweb, which surged by 17.18 percent after getting provisional license from the state-owned Philippine Amusement & Gaming Corp. as an accredited electronic gaming service provider.
Nickel Asia likewise gained 6.74 percent while Bloomberry rose by 2.95 percent.
On Tuesday, foreigners were net buyers albeit at a modest level of P12 million.
The ghost month, which will run until September 19, refers to a period in the Lunar calendar when Chinese investors avoid making big-ticket investments or other big moves like getting married or moving to a new house. Trading volumes are usually thinner during this period.