Stocks seen to trade in tight range

The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) was expected to trade within a tight range as investors wait for new government guidelines that would allow more targeted and localized lockdowns to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The PSEi managed to rise by 1.06 percent to 6,970.51 last week as investors looked past record-breaking COVID-19 infections toward the next steps the government would take to revive the economy, according to BDO Unibank Inc. chief strategist Jonathan Ravelas. “Government is finalizing a new system of granular lockdowns and [the National Capital Region] is the pilot test for the country,” Ravelas said in a note to investors.

He sees the PSEi moving between the 6,900 and 7,000 range in the near term. However, he warned that the market could move lower as investors take profits if the PSEi failed to gain upward momentum.

Luis Gerardo Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development, told the Inquirer that relatively low volume remained a problem and investors were looking to see if foreign buyers would pick up the slack. “Value turnover has been rather anemic so investors will be keeping an eye out whether net foreign buying will continue, but with more trading activity,” he said.

Limlingan sees the PSEi trade in a similar range of 6,850 to 7,050 in the coming week. INQ