Most share prices closed lower on Tuesday, weighed down by bleak US jobs data and thin market participation.
The main-share Philippine Stock Exchange index shed 16.63 points, or 0.33 percent, to close at 5,022.29. Dealers said some big trading participants were still on holiday, while those who had returned to the market after a long Lenten break factored in the disappointing US jobs report that had dampened Wall Street trading for the last four sessions.
“Though the market recovered from an intra-day decline of more than 40 points, the market was still on a holiday hangover mode,” said Manny Lisbona of PNB Securities. “Concerns over US jobs data last week still lingered as well.”
The local index was weighed down by the holding firm sub-index, which fell by 1.3 percent. The industrial, services and mining/oil counters also closed in negative territory.
There were 53 advancers against 95 decliners, while 48 stocks were unchanged. Value turnover was thinner at P4.95 billion, compared with the over P7 billion average turnover in the first quarter.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average dropped by 130.55 points, or 1 percent, to 12,929.59. US nonfarm payrolls created 120,000 new jobs in March, lower than the forecast of 203,000 jobs.