PH investors seek to secure profits ahead of Holy Week break

Investors are expected to continue locking in profits from higher-priced shares ahead of the Holy Week holidays that will shorten the trading week.

Philippine shares on Friday went below the 6,900 territory after a two-session streak of advances as traders cashed in on shares with higher prices.

Michael Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said this was consistent with patterns seen in the past, during which profit-taking pulls down the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi).

Ricafort said there would be “some locking of gains after hefty gains in recent weeks amid possible relatively lower/thin trading activities/volumes during the holiday-shortened Holy Week, when some market players are on vacation.”

The PSEi reclaimed 6,900 last Thursday amid the US Federal Reserve’s promise to cut its policy rates thrice this year.

The American central bank’s move encouraged and surprised investors, as both the US producer price index and consumer price index moved higher than expected. —Meg J. Adonis INQ