PH stocks down on profit-taking

MANILA, Philippines–Philippine stocks on Thursday traded lower after the main index briefly breached the 7,400 level, a record high, which prompted shareholders to bag profits.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index slid by 0.83 percent, or 61.08 points, to 7,294.21. The broader all-shares index also declined by 0.59 percent to 4,314.90.

All sub-sectors closed in the red, with property firms leading the way, posting losses of 1.59 percent. It was followed by financials, down 0.91 percent, and services, down, 0.63 percent.

A total of 4.2 billion shares changed hands, valued at P9.5 billion.

Losses were broad-based, with 113 companies closing in the red, while 61 firms gained.

The PSE noted that 53 companies closed unchanged Thursday.

The two most active stocks on Thursday belonged to the group of billionaire Andrew Tan—both added on to gains of the previous session. Alliance Global Group Inc. rose by 1.36 percent to P26.15 a share, while its property subsidiary Megaworld Corp. rose grew by 1.82 percent to P5.04 a share.

Ayala Land Inc. followed (down 2.02 percent to P33.95), Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (down 0.61 percent to P3,250) and SM Prime Holdings (down 3.38 percent to P17.70).–Miguel Camus