Markets expect no cheer for the new year as investors brace for the post-holiday COVID-19 surge.
“It will be a new year but old concerns remain. Expect the market to be risk averse by [this] week,” Astro del Castillo, managing director of First Grade Finance Inc., said in an interview.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) plummeted 2.9 percent, or over 200 points, to 7,122.63 on Friday after the Department of Health reported a steep increase in new COVID-19 infections.
Thus, the benchmark measure closed 2021 lower by 0.2 percent from the previous year.
Alfred Benjamin “Ian” Garcia, AB Captal Securities Inc. assistant manager, sales and marketing, said the market could move lower with eyes on the PSEi support levels.
“If COVID-19 cases continue increasing on the same trajectory we may see the index testing it’s initial support level between 7,000-7,100,” he told the Inquirer.
“Worst case scenario is the index sinks back to 6,800 level,” he added.
Garcia said the post-holiday surge was expected but recent data from the DOH was nevertheless “alarming.”
He suggested traders and investors temporarily shift away from recovery plays in the market such as entertainment, leisure, retail and travel-related stocks.
“Earnings might look good for Q4 2021, but if the situation degenerates back to how it was during the last Delta wave, we might see more restrictions put in place again,” he said. INQ