Profit-taking pulls down PSEi from 2-year high

The stock market pulled back from a two-year high after investors pocketed gains on Wednesday.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) closed down 1.02 percent, or 76.22 points, to 7,382.77 while the broader all-shares index shed 0.68 percent, or 26.87 points, to 3,906.20.

“Philippine shares succumbed to profit taking after testing a previous high ahead of the January [consumer price index] report, and PSEi rebalancing announcement,” Luis Gerardo Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development, said in a note to investors.

BDO Unibank Inc., Globe Telecom and Converge ICT Solutions were the top index losers on Thursday.

All PSE subsectors also closed lower, with property and holding firms dropping 1.54 percent and 1.49 percent, respectively.

Industrial stocks sank 0.55 percent, followed by mining and oil, down 0.47 percent; financials, down 0.29 percent; and services, down 0.04 percent.

Foreign buying withstood the wave of profit taking as overseas buyers purchased a net amount of P162.1 million. A total of 1.69 billion shares valued at P6.75 billion changed hands on Thursday. PSE data also showed 115 losers against 83 advancers while 57 companies closed unchanged.

—Miguel R. Camus